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SOUTHERN   BRANCH 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
LIBRARY 

LOS  ANGELES.  CALIF. 


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of  which  this  is 

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'5h?  Qlomi^ 


Catherine  de'  Medici,  the  Queen  of  Spain, 
and  the  Duke  of  Alva 

From  drawing  by  Frederick  Die/man 


Eiiitian    bt    Knxt 


VOLUME    II 


®I|p  ^xat  of  t\^t  iutrlj  »p;iubltr 
A  IJtatorg 

Vol.  II 


Sfrtn  fork 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Coneress,  in  the  year 

one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty  five,  by 

John  Lothrop  Motley, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the 

District  of  Massachusetts. 


Copyright,  1883, 1900,  by  Elizabeth  Cabot  Vernon  Harcoubt, 

Mart  Lothrop  Sheridan,  Susan  Margaret 

Stack  POLE    Mildmat. 


ID  5" 

107 

CONTENTS 

Part  II   f  Continued  J 

I 
Chapter  FV.— Joint  letter  to  Philip  from  Orange,  Egmont, 
and  Horn— Egmont's  qxiarrel  with  Aerschot  and  with  Arem- 
berg— Philip's  answer  to  the  three  nobles— His  instructions 
to  the  duchess— Egmont  declines  the  king's  invitation  to 
visit  Spain— Second  letter  of  the  three  seigniors— Mission 
of  Armenteros— Letter  of  Alva— Secret  letters  of  Granvelle 
to  Philip— The  cardinal's  insinuations  and  instructions — His 
complaints  as  to  the  lukewarmness  of  Berghen  and  Mon- 
tigny  in  the  cause  of  the  Inquisition — Anecdotes  to  their 
discredit  privately  chronicled  by  Granvelle— Supposed  ne- 
cessity for  the  king's  presence  in  the  provinces — Correspon- 
dence of  Lazarus  Schwendi— Approaching  crisis— Anxiety 
of  Granvelle  to  retire— Banquet  of  Caspar  Schetz — Invention 
of  the  fool's-cap  livery— Correspondence  of  the  duchess  and 
of  the  cardinal  with  Philip  upon  the  subject — Entire  with- 
drawal of  the  three  seigniors  from  the  state  council- The 
king  advises  with  Alva  concerning  the  recall  of  Granvelle— 
Elaborate  duplicity  of  Philip's  arrangements— His  secret 
note  to  the  cardinal — His  dissembling  letters  to  others — 
Departure  of  Granvelle  from  the  Netherlands— Various 
opinions  as  to  its  cause— Ludicrous  conduct  of  Brederode 
and  Hoogstraaten— Fabulous  statements  in  Granvelle's  cor- 
respondence concerning  his  recall- Universal  mystification 
— The  cardinal  deceived  by  the  king— Granvelle  in  retire- 
ment—His epicureanism — Fears  in  the  provinces  as  to  his 
return — Universal  joy  at  his  depai'ture — Representations  to 
his  discredit  made  by  the  duchess  to  Philip— Her  hypocriti- 
cal letters  to  the  cardinal— Masquerade  at  Count  Mansfeld's 


413^3 


X  CONTENTS 

PAGX 

— Chantonnay's  advice  to  his  brother— Review  of  Granvelle's 
administration,  and  estimate  of  his  character 1 

Chapter  V.— Return  of  the  three  seigniors  to  the  state 
council— Policy  of  Orange— Corrupt  character  of  the  gov- 
ernment— Efforts  of  the  prince  in  favor  of  reform — Influence 
of  Armenteros — Painful  situation  of  Viglius — His  anxiety 
to  retire— Secret  charges  against  him  transmitted  by  the 
duchess  to  Philip— Ominous  signs  of  the  times— Attention  of 
Philip  to  the  details  of  persecution- Execution  of  Fabricius 
and  tumult  at  Antwerp— Horrible  cruelty  toward  the  Prot- 
estants—Remonstrance of  the  magistracy  of  Bruges  and 
of  the  four  Flemish  estates  against  Titelmann— Obduracy 
of  Philip— Council  of  Trent— Quarrel  for  precedence  be- 
tween the  French  and  Spanish  envoys — Order  for  the  pub- 
lication of  the  Trent  decrees  in  the  Netherlands— Opposition 
to  the  measure — Reluctance  of  the  duchess — Egmont  accepts 
a  mission  to  Spain — Violent  debate  in  the  council  concern- 
ing his  instructions— Remarkable  speech  of  Orange— Apo- 
plexy of  Viglius — Temporary  appointment  of  Hopper— De- 
parture of  Egmont — Disgraceful  scene  at  Cambray— Charac- 
ter of  the  archbishop — Egmont  in  Spain— Flattery  and 
bribery— Council  of  doctors— Vehement  declarations  of 
Philip — His  instructions  to  Egmont  at  his  departure — Pro- 
ceedings of  Orange  in  regard  to  his  principality — Egmont's 
report  to  the  state  council  concerning  his  mission — His 
vainglory— Renewed  orders  from  Philip  to  continue  the  per- 
secution— Indignation  of  Egmont — Habitual  dissimulation 
of  the  king— Reproof  of  Egmont  by  Orange— Assembly  of 
doctors  in  Brussels— Result  of  their  deliberations  trans- 
mitted to  Philip — Universal  excitement  in  the  Netherlands 
—New  punishment  for  heretics— Interview  at  Bayonne  be- 
tween Catherine  de'  Medici  and  her  daughter,  the  Queen  of 
Spain— Mistaken  views  upon  this  subject— Diplomacy  of 
Alva— Artful  conduct  of  Catherine— Stringent  letters  from 
Philip  to  the  duchess  with  regard  to  the  Inquisition — Con- 
sternation of  Margaret  and  of  Viglius— New  proclamation  of 
the  edicts,  the  Inquisition,  and  the  Council  of  Trent— Fury 
of  the  people — Resistance  of  the  leading  seigniors  and  of 
the  Brabant  council— Brabant  declared  free  of  the  Inquisi- 


CONTENTS  Xi 

PAGK 

tion— Prince  Alexander  of  Parma  betrothed  to  Donna  Maria 
of  Portugal— Her  portrait— Expensive  preparations  for  the 
nuptials— Assembly  of  the  Golden  Fleece — Oration  of  Vig- 
lius— Wedding  of  Prince  Alexander 79 

Chapter  "VT.— Francis  Junius— His  sermon  at  Culemburg 
House — The  Compromise — Portraits  of  Sainte-Aldegonde, 
of  Louis  of  Nassau,  of  "  Toison  d'Or,"  of  Charles  Mansfeld 
—Sketch  of  the  Compromise— Attitude  of  Orange— His  letter 
to  the  duchess- Signers  of  the  Compromise — Indiscretion  of 
the  confederates — Espionage  over  Philip  by  Orange — Dissat- 
isfaction of  the  seigniors — Conduct  of  Egmont — Despair  of 
the  people— Emigration  to  England— Its  effects— The  Be- 
quest— Meeting  at  Breda  and  Hoogstraaten — Exaggerated 
statements  concerning  the  Bequest  in  the  state  council- 
Hesitation  of  the  duchess— Assembly  of  notables— Debate 
concerning  the  Bequest  and  the  Inquisition — Character  of 
Brederode— Arrival  of  the  petitioners  in  Brussels— Presen- 
tation of  the  Bequest— Emotion  of  Margaret — Speech  of 
Brederode— Sketch  of  the  Bequest— Memorable  sarcasm  of 
Berlaymont — Deliberation  in  the  state  council — Apostil  to 
the  Bequest — Answer  to  the  apostil — Eeply  of  the  duchess 
—Speech  of  D'Esquerdes— Besponse  of  Margaret— Memora- 
ble banquet  at  Culemburg  House — Name  of  the  "beggars" 
adopted— Orange,  Egmont,  and  Horn  break  up  the  riotous 
meeting— Costume  of  the  "beggars"— Brederode  at  Ant- 
werp—Horrible execution  at  Oudenarde— Similar  cruelties 
throughout  the  provinces — Project  of  "  Moderation  "—Be- 
ligious  views  of  Orange— His  resignation  of  all  his  offices 
not  accepted— The  "Moderation  "  characterized— Egmont  at 
Arras— Debate  on  the  "  Moderation  "—Vacillation  of  Egmont 
— Mission  of  Montigny  and  Berghen  to  Spain — Instructions 
to  the  envoys— Secret  correspondence  of  Philip  with  the 
pope  concerning  the  Netherland  Inquisition  and  the  edicts— 
Field-preaching  in  the  provinces— Modet  at  Ghent— Other 
preachers  characterized— Excitement  at  Tournay — Peter 
Gabriel  at  Haarlem— Field-preaching  near  Antwerp— Em- 
barrassment of  the  regent— Excitement  at  Antwerp — Pen- 
sionary Wesenbeck  sent  to  Brussels— Orange  at  Antwerp 
—His  patriotic  course— Misrepresentation  of  the  duchess— 


xii  CONTENTS 

PAQK 

Intemperate  zeal  of  Dr.  Rythovius— Meeting  at  St.-Trond 
—Conference  at  Duffel— Louis  of  Nassau  deputed  to  the 
regent— Unsatisfactory  negotiations 144 

Chapter  VII.— Ecclesiastical  architecture  in  the  Netherlands 
—The  image-breaking— Description  of  Antwerp  Cathedral 
— Ceremony  of  the  Ommegang — Precursory  disturbances — 
Iconoclasts  at  Antwerp— Incidents  of  the  image-breaking  in 
various  cities— Events  at  Tournay— Preaching  of  Wille— 
Disturbance  by  a  little  boy— Churches  sacked  at  Tournay 
—Disinterment  of  Duke  Adolphus  of  Guelders- Iconoclasts 
defeated  and  massacred  at  Anchin — Bartholomew's  day  at 
Valenciennes — General  characteristics  of  the  image-break- 
ing— Testimony  of  contemporaries  as  to  the  honesty  of  the 
rioters— Consternation  of  the  duchess— Projected  flight  to 
Mons— Advice  of  Horn  and  other  seigniors— Accord  of  23d 
August 218 

Chapter  VIII.— Secret  policy  of  the  government— Berghen 
and  Montigny  in  Spain — Debates  at  Segovia— Correspon- 
dence of  the  duchess  with  Philip— Procrastination  and  dis- 
simulation of  tho  king — Secret  communication  to  the  pope 
—Effect  in  the  provinces  of  the  king's  letters  to  the  gov- 
ernment—Secret instructions  to  the  duchess— Desponding 
statements  of  Margaret— Her  misrepresentations  concerning 
Orange,  Egmont,  and  others— Wrath  and  duplicity  of  Philip 
— Egmont's  exertions  in  Flanders— Orange  returns  to  Ant- 
werp— His  tolerant  spirit — Agi-eement  of  2d  September — 
Horn  at  Tournay— Excavations  in  the  cathedral— Almost 
universal  attendance  at  the  preaching — Building  of  temples 
commenced— Difficult  position  of  Horn— Preaching  in  the 
Clothiers'  Hall— Horn  recalled— Noircarmes  at  Tournay- 
Friendly  correspondence  of  Margaret  with  Orange,  Egmont, 
Horn,  and  Hoogstraaten— Her  secret  defamation  of  these 
persons 250 

Chapter  IX.— Position  of  Orange— The  interview  at  Dender- 
monde— The  supposititious  letters  of  Alava— Views  of  Eg- 
mont—Isolation  of  Orange— Conduct  of  Egmont  and  of 
Horn— Confederacy  of  the  nobles  dissolved— Weak  behavior 
of  prominent  personages— Watchfulness  of  Orange— Con- 


CONTENTS  xiii 

PAGE 

vocation  of  States-General  demanded— Pamphlet  of  Orange 
—City  of  Valenciennes  refuses  a  garrison— Influence  of  La 
Grange  and  De  Bray— City  declared  in  a  state  of  siege — 
Invested  by  Noircannes— Movements  to  relieve  the  place — 
Calvinists  defeated  at  Lannoy  and  at  Watrelots— Elation  of 
the  government— The  siege  pressed  more  closely— Cruelties 
practised  upon  the  country  people — Courage  of  the  inhabi- 
tants—Remonstrance to  the  Knights  of  the  Fleece— Conduct 
of  Brederode— Orange  at  Amsterdam— Now  oath  demanded 
by  government— Orange  refuses— He  offers  his  resignation 
of  all  offices— Meeting  at  Breda— New  "  Request "  of  Bre- 
derode —  He  creates  disturbances  and  levies  troops  in 
Antwerp— Conduct  of  Hoogstraaten— Plans  of  Brederode— 
Supposed  connivance  of  Orange— Alarm  at  Brussels— Tho- 
louse  at  Austruweel— Brederode  in  Holland— De  Beauvoir 
defeats  Tholouse— Excitement  at  Antwerp— Determined 
conduct  of  Orange— Three  days'  tumult  at  Antwerp  sup- 
pressed by  the  wisdom  and  courage  of  Orange   .     .     .     .     .  285 

Chapter  X. — Egmont  and  Aerschot  before  Valenciennes — 
Severity  of  Egmont— Capitulation  of  the  city— Escape  and 
capture  of  the  ministers — Execution  of  La  Grange  and  De 
Bray— Horrible  cruelty  at  Valenciennes— Effects  of  the  re- 
duction of  Valenciennes— The  duchess  at  Antwerp— Armed 
invasion  of  the  provinces  decided  upon  in  Spain  —Appoint- 
ment of  Alva— Indignation  of  Margaret— Mission  of  De  Billy 
—Pretended  visit  of  Philip— Attempts  of  the  duchess  to  gain 
over  Orange— Mission  of  Berty— Interview  between  Orange 
and  Egmont  at  Willebroek— Orange's  letters  to  Philip,  to 
Egmont,  and  to  Horn— Oi'ange  departs  from  the  Nether- 
lauds— Philip's  letter  to  Egmont— Secret  intelligence  re- 
ceived by  Orange— La  Torre's  mission  to  Brederode— Brede- 
rode's  departure  and  death— Death  of  Bergh en— Despair  in 
the  provinces— Great  emigration — Cruelties  practised  upon 
those  of  the  new  religion— Edict  of  24th  May— Wrath  of  the 
king 340 


xiv  CONTENTS 


Part  HI 

Alva 
1567-1573 

PAGE 

Chapter  I.— Continued  dissensions  in  the  Spanish  cabinet— 
Euy  Gomez  and  Alva— Conquest  of  the  Netherlands  intrusted 
to  the  duke— Birth,  previous  career,  and  character  of  Alva— 
Organization  of  the  invading  army— Its  march  to  the  prov- 
inces— Complaints  of  Duchess  Margaret — Alva  receives 
deputations  on  the  frontier— Interview  between  the  duke 
and  Egmont— Reception  of  Alva  by  the  Duchess  of  Parma- 
Circular  letters  to  the  cities  requiring  their  acceptance  of 
garrisons— Margaret's  secret  correspondence— Universal 
apprehension— Keys  of  the  great  cities  demanded  by  Alva— 
Secret  plans  of  the  government,  arranged  before  the  duke's 
departure— Arrest  of  Orange,  Egmont,  Horn,  and  others  de- 
termined upon— Stealthy  course  of  the  government  toward 
them— Infatuation  of  Egmont— Warnings  addressed  to  him 
by  De  Billy  and  others— Measures  to  entrap  Count  Horn- 
Banquet  of  the  grand  prior- The  grand  prior's  warning  to 
Egmont— Evil  counsels  of  Noircarmes— Arrests  of  Egmont, 
Horn,  Bakkerzeel,  and  Straalen— Popular  consternation- 
Petulant  conduct  of  Duchess  Margaret — Characteristic  com- 
ments of  Granvelle — His  secret  machinations  and  disclaimers 
— Berghen  and  Montigny— Last  moments  of  Marquis  Berg- 
hen— Perfidy  of  Ruy  Gomez— Establishment  of  the  Blood- 
Council— Its  leading  features— Insidious  behavior  of  Vig- 
lius — Secret  correspondence,  concerning  the  president, 
between  Philip  and  Alva— Members  of  the  Blood-Council 
—Portraits  of  Vargas  and  Hessels— Mode  of  proceeding 
adopted  by  the  council— Wholesale  executions— Despair  in 
the  provinces— The  resignation  of  Duchess  Margaret  ac- 
cepted—Her departure  from  the  Netherlands— Renewed 
civil  war  in  France— Death  of  Montmorency— Auxiliary 
troops  sent  by  Alva  to  France— Erection  of  Antwerp  citadel 
—Description  of  the  citadel     . 373 


THE 

RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC 


CHAPTER  IV 


Joint  letter  to  Philip  from  Orange,  Egmont,  and  Horn— Egmont's 
quarrel  with  Aerschot  and  with  Aremberg— Philip's  answer  to  the 
three  nobles — His  instructions  to  the  duchess— Egmont  declines 
the  king's  invitation  to  visit  Spain— Second  letter  of  the  three 
seigniors— Mission  of  Armenteros— Letter  of  Alva — Secret  letters 
of  Granvelle  to  Philip — The  cardinal's  insinuations  and  instruc- 
tions—His complaints  as  to  the  lukewarmness  of  Berghen  and 
Montigny  in  the  cause  of  the  Inquisition — Anecdotes  to  their  dis- 
credit privately  chronicled  by  Granvelle— Supposed  necessity  for 
the  king's  presence  in  the  provinces— Correspondence  of  Lazarus 
Schwendi — Approaching  crisis— Anxiety  of  Granvelle  to  retire — 
Banquet  of  Caspar  Schetz— Invention  of  the  fool's-cap  livery— Cor- 
respondence of  the  duchess  and  of  the  cardinal  with  Philip  upon 
the  subject — Entire  withdrawal  of  the  three  seigniors  from  the 
state  council— The  king  advises  with  Alva  concerning  the  recall  of 
Granvelle— Elaborate  duplicity  of  Philip's  arrangements— His 
secret  note  to  the  cardinal — His  dissembling  letters  to  others — 
Departure  of  Granvelle  from  the  Netherlands — Various  opinions 
as  to  its  cause — Ludicrous  conduct  of  Brederode  and  Hoogstraaten 
—Fabulous  statements  in  Granvelle's  correspondence  concerning 
his  recall — Universal  mystification — The  cardinal  deceived  by  the 
king— Granvelle  in  retirement — His  epicureanism — Fears  in  the 
provinces  as  to  his  return — Universal  joy  at  his  departure — Repre- 
sentations to  his  discredit  made  by  the  duchess  to  Philip— Her 
hypocritical  letters  to  the  cardinal— Masquerade  at  Count  Mans- 
VOL.  II.  — 1  1 


2  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

f eld's— Chantonnay's  advice  to  his  brother— Review  of  Granvelle's 
administration,  and  estimate  of  his  character. 


ON  the  llth  March,  1563,  Orange,  Horn,  and  Egmont 
united  in  a  remarkable  letter  to  the  king.i  They  said 
that  as  their  longer  "  taciturnity  "  might  cause  the  ruin 
of  his  Majesty's  affairs,  they  were  at  last  compelled  to 
break  silence.  They  hoped  that  the  king  would  receive 
with  benignity  a  communication  which  was  pure,  frank, 
and  free  from  all  passion.  The  leading  personages  of 
the  province,  they  continued,  having  thoroughly  ex- 
amined the  nature  and  extent  of  Cardinal  Granvelle's 
authority,  had  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  everything 
was  in  his  hands.  This  persuasion,  they  said,  was  rooted 
in  the  hearts  of  all  his  Majesty's  subjects,  and  particularly 
in  their  own,  so  deeply  that  it  could  not  be  eradicated 
as  long  as  the  cardinal  remained.  The  king  was  there- 
fore implored  to  consider  the  necessity  of  remedying  the 
evil.  The  royal  affairs,  it  was  affirmed,  would  never  be 
successfully  conducted  so  long  as  they  were  intrusted  to 
Granvelle,  because  he  was  so  odious  to  so  many  people. 
If  the  danger  were  not  imminent,  they  should  not  feel 
obliged  to  write  to  his  Majesty  with  so  much  vehemence. 
It  was,  however,  an  affair  which  allowed  neither  delay 
nor  dissimulation.  They  therefore  prayed  the  king,  if 
they  had  ever  deserved  credence  in  things  of  weight,  to 
believe  them  now.  By  so  doing,  his  Majesty  would 
avoid  great  miscliief .  Many  grand  seigniors,  governors, 
and  others  had  thought  it  necessary  to  give  this  notice, 
in  order  that  the  king  might  prevent  the  ruin  of  the 
country.  If,  however,  his  Majesty  were  willing,  as  they 
hoped,  to  avoid  discontenting  all  for  the  sake  of  satisfy- 
1  Correspondanee  de  GiuUaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  35-39. 


1563]  THE  IDES  OF  MAECH  3 

ing  one,  it  was  possible  that  affairs  miglit  yet  prosper. 
That  they  might  not  be  thought  influenced  by  ambition 
or  by  hope  of  private  profit,  the  writers  asked  leave  to 
retire  from  the  state  council.  Neither  their  reputation, 
they  said,  nor  the  interests  of  the  royal  service  would 
permit  them  to  act  with  the  cardinal.  They  professed 
themselves  dutiful  subjects  and  Catholic  vassals.  Had 
it  not  been  for  the  zeal  of  the  leading  seigniors,  the 
nobility,  and  other  well-disposed  persons,  affairs  would 
not  at  that  moment  be  so  tranquil,  the  common  people 
having  been  so  much  injured,  and  the  manner  of  life 
pursued  by  the  cardinal  not  being  calculated  to  give 
more  satisfaction  than  was  afforded  by  his  unlimited 
authority.  In  conclusion,  the  writers  begged  his  Majesty 
not  to  throw  the  blame  upon  them  if  mischance  should 
follow  the  neglect  of  this  warning.  This  memorable 
letter  was  signed  by  GuOlaume  de  Nassau,  Lamoral 
d'Egmont,  and  Philippe  de  Montmorency  (Count  Horn). 
It  was  despatched  under  cover  to  Charles  de  Tisnacq,^  a 
Belgian,  and  procurator  for  the  affairs  of  the  Nether- 
lands at  Madrid,  a  man  whose  relations  with  Count 
Egmont  were  of  a  friendly  character.  It  was  impossible, 
however,  to  keep  the  matter  a  secret  from  the  person 
most  interested.  The  cardinal  wrote  to  the  king  the 
day  before  the  letter  was  written,  and  many  weeks 
before  it  was  sent,  to  apprise  him  that  it  was  coming, 
and  to  instruct  him  as  to  the  answer  he  was  to  make.^ 
Nearly  all  the  leading  nobles  and  governors  had  adhered 
to  the  substance  of  the  letter,  save  the  Duke  of  Aerschot, 
Count  Aremberg,  and  Baron  Berlaymont.  The  duke 
and  count  had  refused  to  join  the  league,  violent  scenes 
having  occurred  upon  the  subject  between  them  and  the 
1  Strada,  iii.  126.  2  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  11-21. 


4  THE  RISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1563 

leaders  of  the  opposition  party.  Egmont,  being  with  a 
large  shooting-party  at  Aerschot's  country  place,  Beau- 
mont, had  taken  occasion  to  urge  the  duke  to  join  in 
the  general  demonstration  against  the  cardinal,  arguing 
the  matter  in  the  rough,  offhand,  reckless  manner  which 
was  habitual  with  him.  His  arguments  offended  the 
nobleman  thus  addressed,  who  was  vain  and  irascible. 
He  replied  by  afi&rming  that  he  was  a  friend  to  Egmont, 
but  would  not  have  him  for  his  master.  He  would  have 
nothing  to  do,  he  said,  with  their  league  against  the 
cardinal,  who  had  never  given  him  cause  of  enmity.  He 
had  no  disposition  to  dictate  to  the  king  as  to  his  choice 
of  ministers,  and  his  Majesty  was  quite  right  to  select 
his  servants  at  his  own  pleasure.  The  duke  added  that 
if  the  seigniors  did  not  wish  him  for  a  friend,  it  was  a 
matter  of  indifference  to  him.  Not  one  of  them  was  his 
superior ;  he  had  as  large  a  band  of  noble  followers  and 
friends  as  the  best  of  them,  and  he  had  no  disposition  to 
accept  the  supremacy  of  any  nobleman  in  the  land.  The 
conversation  carried  on  in  this  key  soon  became  a  quar- 
rel, and  from  words  the  two  gentlemen  would  soon  have 
come  to  blows,  but  for  the  interposition  of  Aremberg 
and  Robles,  who  were  present  at  the  scene.  The  Duchess 
of  Parma,  narrating  the  occurrence  to  the  king,  added 
that  a  duel  had  been  the  expected  result  of  the  affair,  but 
that  the  two  nobles  had  eventually  been  reconciled.^  It 
was  characteristic  of  Aerschot  that  he  continued  afterward 
to  associate  with  the  nobles  upon  friendly  terms,  while 
maintaining  an  increased  intimacy  with  the  cardinal.^ 

1  Papiers  d'fetat,  vii.  5,  11-21.    Correspondance  de  Philippe  II., 
i.  241,  242.     Strada,  iii.  124. 

2  Papiers  d'fetat,  vii.  11-21 :  "  Converse  con  ellos,  y  ellos  eon  el, 
con  muy  buena  cara,  y  ny  mas  ny  menos  el  conmigo  y  yo  con  el." 


1563]      CONSEQUENCES  OF  THE  MARCH  LETTER  5 

The  gentlemen  who  sent  the  letter  were  annoyed  at 
the  premature  publicity  which  it  seemed  to  have  attained. 
Orange  had  in  vain  solicited  Count  Aremberg  to  join 
the  league,  and  had  quarreled  with  him  in  consequence.^ 
Egmont,  in  the  presence  of  Madame  de  Parma,  openly 
charged  Aremberg  with  having  divulged  the  secret  which 
had  been  confided  to  him.  The  count  fiercely  denied 
that  he  had  uttered  a  syllable  on  the  subject  to  a  human 
being,  but  added  that  any  communication  on  his  part 
would  have  been  quite  superfluous  while  Egmont  and 
his  friends  were  daily  boasting  of  what  they  were  to 
accomplish.  Egmont  reiterated  the  charge  of  a  breach 
of  faith  by  Aremberg.  That  nobleman  replied  by  lay- 
ing his  hand  upon  his  sword,  denouncing  as  liars  all 
persons  who  should  dare  to  charge  him  again  with  such 
an  offense,  and  offering  to  fight  out  the  quarrel  upon 
the  instant.  Here,  again,  personal  combat  was  with 
much  difficulty  averted.^ 

Egmont,  rude,  reckless,  and  indiscreet,  was  already 
making  manifest  that  he  was  more  at  home  on  a  battle- 
field than  in  a  political  controversy  where  prudence  and 
knowledge  of  human  nature  were  as  requisite  as  courage. 
He  was  at  this  period  more  liberal  in  his  sentiments 
than  at  any  moment  of  his  life.  Inflamed  by  his  hatred 
of  Granvelle,  and  determined  to  compass  the  overthrow 
of  that  minister,  he  conversed  freely  with  all  kinds  of 
people,  sought  popularity  among  the  burghers,  and  des- 
canted to  every  one  with  much  imprudence  upon  the 
necessity  of  union  for  the  sake  of  liberty  and  the  national 
good.3    The  regent,  while  faithfully  recording  in  her 

1  Papiers  d'fetat,  vii.  18,  19. 

2  Strada,  iii.  126.     Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  248. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  248. 


6  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

despatches  everything  of  this  nature  which  reached  her 
ears,  expressed  her  astonishment  at  Egmont's  course, 
because,  as  she  had  often  taken  occasion  to  inform  the 
king,  she  had  always  considered  the  count  most  sincerely 
attached  to  his  Majesty's  service.^ 

Berlaymont,  the  only  other  noble  of  prominence  who 
did  not  approve  the  11th  of  March  letter,  was  at  this 
period  attempting  to  "swim  in  two  waters,"  and,  as 
usual  in  such  cases,  found  it  very  difficult  to  keep  him- 
self afloat.  He  had  refused  to  join  the  league,  but  he 
stood  aloof  from  Granvelle.  On  a  hope  held  out  by  the 
seigniors  that  his  son  should  be  made  Bishop  of  Li^ge, 
he  had  ceased  during  a  whole  year  from  visiting  the 
cardinal,  and  had  never  spoken  to  him  at  the  council- 
board.2  Granvelle,  in  narrating  these  circumstances  to 
the  king,  expressed  the  opinion  that  Berlaymont,  by 
thus  attempting  to  please  both  parties,  had  thoroughly 
discredited  himself  with  both.^ 

The  famous  epistle,  although  a  most  reasonable  and 
manly  statement  of  an  incontrovertible  fact,  was  never- 
theless a  document  which  it  required  much  boldness  to 
sign.  The  minister  at  that  moment  seemed  omnipotent, 
and  it  was  obvious  that  the  king  was  determined  upon 
a  course  of  political  and  religious  absolutism.  It  is 
therefore  not  surprising  that,  although  many  sustained 
its  principles,  few  were  willing  to  aflBx  their  names  to 
a  paper  which  might  prove  a  death-warrant  to  the  signers. 
Even  Montigny  and  Berghen,  although  they  had  been 
active  in  conducting  the  whole  cabal,  if  cabal  it  could  be 
called,  refused  to  subscribe  the  letter.*     Egmont  and 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  248. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  11-21.  3  Ibid. 
*  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  2. 


1563]  PHILIP'S  MEAGRE  REPLY  ^ 

Horn  were  men  of  reckless  daring,  but  they  were  not 
keen-sighted  enough  to  perceive  fully  the  consequences 
of  their  acts.  Orange  was  often  accused  by  his  enemies 
of  timidity,  but  no  man  ever  doubted  his  profound 
capacity  to  look  quite  through  the  deeds  of  men.  His 
political  foresight  enabled  him  to  measure  the  dangerous 
precipice  which  they  were  deliberately  approaching, 
while  the  abyss  might  perhaps  be  shrouded  to  the  vision 
of  his  companions.  He  was  too  tranquil  of  nature  to 
be  hurried  by  passion  into  a  grave  political  step  which 
in  cooler  moments  he  might  regret.  He  resolutely, 
therefore,  and  with  his  eyes  open,  placed  himself  in  open 
and  recorded  enmity  with  the  most  powerful  and  dan- 
gerous man  in  the  whole  Spanish  realm,  and  incurred 
the  resentment  of  a  king  who  never  forgave.  It  may  be 
safely  averred  that  as  much  courage  was  requisite  thus 
to  confront  a  cold  and  malignant  despotism,  and  to 
maintain  afterward,  without  flinching,  during  a  whole 
lifetime,  the  cause  of  national  rights  and  liberty  of  con- 
science, as  to  head  the  most  brilliant  charge  of  cavalry 
that  ever  made  hero  famous. 

Philip  answered  the  letter  of  the  three  nobles  on  the 
6th  June  following.  In  this  reply,^  which  was  brief,  he 
acknowledged  the  zeal  and  affection  by  which  the  writers 
had  been  actuated.  He  suggested,  nevertheless,  that,  as 
they  had  mentioned  no  particular  cause  for  adopting 
the  advice  contained  in  their  letter,  it  would  be  better 
that  one  of  them  should  come  to  Madrid  to  confer  with 
him.  Such  matters,  he  said,  could  be  better  treated  by 
word  of  mouth.  He  might  thus  receive  sufficient  infor- 
mation to  enable  him  to  form  a  decision,  for,  said  he  in 

^  Correspondance  de  G.  le  Tacit.,  ii.  41,  42. 


8  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

conclusion,  it  was  not  his  custom  to  aggrieve  any  of 
Ms  ministers  without  cause. ^ 

This  was  a  fine  phrase,  but,  under  the  circumstances  of 
its  application,  quite  ridiculous.  There  was  no  question 
of  aggrieving  the  minister.  The  letter  of  the  three 
nobles  was  very  simple.  It  consisted  of  a  fact  and  a 
deduction.  The  fact  stated  was  that  the  cardinal  was 
odious  to  all  classes  of  the  nation.  The  deduction  drawn 
was  that  the  government  could  no  longer  be  carried  on 
by  him  without  imminent  danger  of  ruinous  convulsions. 
The  fact  was  indisputable.  The  person  most  inter- 
ested confirmed  it  in  his  private  letters.  ''  'T  is  said," 
wrote  Granvelle  to  Philip,  ''that  grandees,  nobles,  and 
people  all  abhor  me,  nor  am  I  surprised  to  find  that 
grandees,  nobles,  and  people  are  all  openly  against  me, 
since  each  and  all  have  been  invited  to  join  in  the  league."  ^ 
The  cardinal's  reasons  for  the  existence  of  the  unpopu- 
larity, which  he  admitted  to  the  full,  have  no  bearing 
upon  the  point  in  the  letter.  The  fact  was  relied  upon 
to  sustain  a  simple  although  a  momentous  inference. 
It  was  for  Philip  to  decide  upon  the  propriety  of  the 
deduction,  and  to  abide  by  the  consequences  of  his 
resolution  when  taken.  As  usual,  however,  the  monarch 
was  not  capable  of  making  up  his  mind.  He  knew  very 
well  that  the  cardinal  was  odious  and  infamous  because 
he  was  the  willing  impersonation  of  the  royal  policy. 
Philip  was,  therefore,  logically  called  upon  to  abandon 
the  policy  or  to  sustain  the  minister.  He  could  make  up 
his  mind  to  do  neither  the  one  nor  the  other.     In  the 

1  Correspondance  de  G.  le  Tacit.,  ii.  41,  42:  "Car  ce  n'est  pas 
ma  coustume  de  grever  aucuns  de  mes  ministres  sans  cause." 

2  "Que  agora  grandes  y  nobles  y  pueblo  me  abhorrecian,"  etc. 
— Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  11-21. 


1563]     PHILIP'S  INSTEUCTIONS  TO  THE  DUCHESS         9 

meantime  a  well-turned  period  of  mock  magnanimity 
had  been  furnished  him.  This  he  accordingly  trans- 
mitted as  his  first  answer  to  a  most  important  communi- 
cation upon  a  subject  which,  in  the  words  of  the  writers, 
"  admitted  neither  of  dissimulation  nor  delay."  To  de- 
prive Philip  of  dissimulation  and  delay,  however,  was  to 
take  away  his  all.  They  were  the  two  weapons  with 
which  he  fought  his  long  life's  battle.  They  summed 
up  the  whole  of  his  intellectual  resources.  It  was  inevi- 
table, therefore,  that  he  should  at  once  have  recourse  to 
both  on  such  an  emergency  as  the  present  one. 

At  the  same  time  that  he  sent  his  answer  to  the  nobles 
he  wi'ote  an  explanatory  letter  to  the  regent.  He  in- 
formed her  that  he  had  received  the  communication  of 
the  three  seigniors,  but  instructed  her  that  she  was  to 
appear  to  know  nothing  of  the  matter  until  Egmont 
should  speak  to  her  upon  the  subject.  He  added  that, 
although  be  had  signified  his  wish  to  the  three  nobles 
that  one  of  them,  without  specifying  which,  should  come 
to  Madrid,  he  in  reality  desired  that  Egmont,  who  seemed 
the  most  tractable  of  the  three,  should  be  the  one  de- 
puted. The  king  added  that  his  object  was  to  divide 
the  nobles  and  to  gain  time.^ 

It  was  certainly  superfluous  upon  Philip's  part  to 
inform  his  sister  that  his  object  was  to  gain  time.  Pro- 
crastination was  alwaj^s  his  first  refuge,  as  if  the  march 
of  the  world's  events  would  pause  indefinitel}'^  while  he 
sat  in  his  cabinet  and  pondered.  It  was,  however,  sufii- 
ciently  puerile  to  recommend  to  his  sister  an  affectation 
of  ignorance  on  a  subject  concerning  which  nobles  had 
wrangled  and  almost  drawn  their  swords  in  her  presence. 
This,  however,  was  the  king's  statesmanship  when  left 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  251. 


10  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

to  his  unaided  exertions.  Granvelle,  who  was  "both  Philip 
and  Margaret  when  either  had  to  address  or  to  respond 
to  the  world  at  large,  did  not  always  find  it  necessary  to 
regulate  the  correspondence  of  his  puppets  between 
themselves.  In  order  more  fully  to  divide  the  nobles, 
the  king  also  transmitted  to  Egmont  a  private  note,  in 
his  own  handwriting,  expressing  his  desire  that  he 
should  visit  Spain  in  person,  that  they  might  confer 
together  upon  the  whole  subject.^ 

These  letters,  as  might  be  supposed,  produced  any- 
thing but  a  satisfactory  effect.  The  discontent  and  rage 
of  the  gentlemen  who  had  written  or  sustained  the  11th 
of  March  communication  were  much  increased.  The 
answer  was,  in  truth,  no  answer  at  all.  *"T  is  a  cold 
and  bad  reply,"  wrote  Louis  of  Nassau,  *'  to  send  after  so 
long  a  delay.  'T  is  easy  to  see  that  the  letter  came  from 
the  cardinal's  smithy.  In  summa,  it  is  a  vile  business 
if  the  gentlemen  are  all  to  be  governed  by  one  person. 
I  hope  to  God  his  power  wiU  come  soon  to  an  end. 
Nevertheless,"  added  Louis,  "  the  gentlemen  are  all  wide 
awake,  for  they  trust  the  red  feUow  not  a  bit  more  than 
he  deserves."  ^ 

The  reader  has  already  seen  that  the  letter  was  indeed 
"from  the  cardinal's  smithy,"  Granvelle  having  in- 
structed his  master  how  to  reply  to  the  seigniors  before 
the  communication  had  been  despatched. 

The  duchess  wrote  immediately  to  inform  her  brother 
that  Egmont  had  expressed  himself  willing  enough  to 
go  to  Spain,  but  had  added  that  he  must  first  consult 
Orange  and  Horn.^     As  soon  as  that  step  had  been 

1  Strada,  iii.  127.     Hopper,  Rec.  et  M6m.,  33.     Hoofd,  ii.  42,  43. 

2  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  164,  165. 
'  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  255-259. 


/ 


1563]     EGMONT  DECLINES  INVITATION  TO  SPAIN        H 

taken,  she  had  been  informed  that  it  was  necessary  for 
them  to  advise  with  all  the  gentlemen  who  had  sanc- 
tioned their  letter.  The  duchess  had  then  tried  in  vain 
to  prevent  such  an  assembly,  but  finding  that,  even  if 
forbidden,  it  would  still  take  place,  she  had  permitted 
the  meeting  in  Brussels,  as  she  could  better  penetrate 
into  their  proceedings  there  than  if  it  should  be  held  at 
a  distance.  She  added  that  she  should  soon  send  her 
secretary,  Armenteros,  to  Spain,  that  the  king  might  be 
thoroughly  acquainted  with  what  was  occurring. ^ 

Egmont  soon  afterward  wrote  to  Philip,  declining  to 
visit  Spain  expressly  on  account  of  the  cardinal.  He 
added  that  he  was  ready  to  undertake  the  journey 
should  the  king  command  his  presence  for  any  other 
object.^  The  same  decision  was  formally  communicated 
to  the  regent  by  those  chevaliers  of  the  Fleece  who  had 
approved  the  11th  of  March  letter— Montigny,  Berghen, 
Meghen,  Mausfeld,  Ligne,  Hoogstraaten,  Orange,  Eg- 
mont, and  Horn.  The  Prince  of  Orange,  speaking  in 
the  name  of  all,  informed  her  that  they  did  not  consider 
it  consistent  with  their  reputation,  nor  with  the  interest 
of  his  Majesty,  that  any  one  of  them  should  make  so 
long  and  troublesome  a  journey  in  order  to  accuse  the 
cardinal.  For  any  other  purpose  they  all  held  them- 
selves ready  to  go  to  Spain  at  once.  The  duchess  ex- 
pressed her  regret  at  this  resolution.  The  prince  replied 
by  affirming  that  in  all  their  proceedings  they  had  been 
governed,  not  by  hatred  of  Granvelle,  but  by  a  sense  of 
duty  to  his  Majesty.  It  was  now,  he  added,  for  the  king 
to  pursue  what  course  it  pleased  him.^ 

Four   days   after   this   interview   with   the   regent, 

'^  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  255-259. 
2  Ibid.  3  Ibid.,  i.  259. 


12  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1563 

Orange,  Egmont,  and  Horn  addressed  a  second  letter  to 
the  king.i  In  this  communication  they  stated  that  they 
had  consulted  with  all  the  gentlemen  with  whose  appro- 
bation theii'  first  letter  had  been  written.  As  to  the 
journey  of  one  of  them  to  Spain,  as  suggested,  they 
pronounced  it  very  dangerous  for  any  seignior  to  absent 
himself,  in  the  condition  of  affairs  which  then  existed. 
It  was  not  a  sufficient  cause  to  go  thither  on  account  of 
Granvelle.  They  disclaimed  any  intention  of  making 
themselves  parties  to  a  process  against  the  cardinal. 
They  had  thought  that  their  simple,  brief  announcement 
would  have  sufficed  to  induce  his  Majesty  to  employ 
that  personage  in  other  places,  where  his  talents  would 
be  more  fruitful.  As  to  "  aggrieving  the  cardinal  with- 
out cause,"  there  was  no  question  of  aggrieving  him  at 
all,  but  of  relieving  him  of  an  office  which  could  not 
remain  in  his  hands  without  disaster.  As  to  "no  par- 
ticular cause  having  been  mentioned,"  they  said  the 
omission  was  from  no  lack  of  many  such.  They  had 
charged  none,  however,  because,  from  their  past  services 
and  their  fidelity  to  his  Majesty,  they  expected  to  be 
believed  on  their  honor,  without  further  witnesses  or 
evidence.  They  had  no  intention  of  making  themselves 
accusers.  They  had  purposely  abstained  from  specifica- 
tions. If  his  Majesty  should  proceed  to  ampler  infor- 
mation, causes  enough  would  be  found.  It  was  better, 
however,  that  they  should  be  furnished  by  others  than 
by  themselves.  His  Majesty  would  then  find  that  the 
public  and  general  complaint  was  not  without  adequate 
motives.  They  renewed  their  prayer  to  be  excused  from 
serving  in  the  council  of  state,  in  order  that  they  might 
not  be  afterward  inculpated  for  the  faults  of  others. 
1  Correspondanee  de  Guillaxune  le  Tacit.,  ii.  42-47. 


1563]  MISSION  OF  ARMENTEROS  13 

Feeling  that  the  controversy  between  themselves  and 
the  Cardinal  de  Granvelle  in  the  state  council  produced 
no  fruit  for  his  Majesty's  affairs,  they  preferred  to  yield 
to  him.  In  conclusion,  they  begged  the  king  to  excuse 
the  simplicity  of  their  letters,  the  rather  that  they  were 
not  by  nature  great  orators,  but  more  accustomed  to  do 
well  than  to  speak  well,  which  was  also  more  becoming 
to  persons  of  their  quality.^ 

On  the  4th  of  August,  Count  Horn  also  addressed  a 
private  letter  to  the  king,  written  in  the  same  spirit  as 
that  which  characterized  the  joint  letter  just  cited.  He 
assured  his  Majesty  that  the  cardinal  could  render  no 
valuable  service  to  the  crown  on  account  of  the  hatred 
which  the  whole  nation  bore  him,  but  that,  as  far  as 
regarded  the  maintenance  of  the  ancient  religion,  all  the 
nobles  were  willing  to  do  their  duty.^ 

The  regent  now  despatched,  according  to  promise, 
her  private  secretary,  Thomas  de  Armenteros,  to  Spain. 
His  instructions,^  which  were  very  elaborate,  showed 
that  Granvelle  was  not  mistaken  when  he  charged  her 
with  being  entirely  changed  in  regard  to  him,  and  when 
he  addressed  her  a  reproachful  letter  protesting  his  as- 
tonishment that  his  conduct  had  become  suspicious,  and 
his  inability  to  divine  the  cause  of  the  weariness  and 
dissatisfaction  which  she  manifested  in  regard  to  him.* 

Armenteros,  a  man  of  low,  mercenary,  and  deceitful 
character,  but  a  favorite  of  the  regent,  and  already  be- 

1  "  D'autant  que  ne  sommes  point  de  nature  grans  orateurs  ou 
harangueurs,  et  plus  accoustumez  a  bien  faire  que  a  bien  dire, 
comme  aussy  il  est  mieulx  seant  a  gens  de  notre  qualite."— Corre- 
gpondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  42-47. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  261,  262. 

3  Ibid.,  i.  265-267.  *  Dom  I'Evesque,  ii.  41-45. 


14  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         C1563 

ginning  to  acquire  that  influence  over  her  mind  which 
was  soon  to  become  so  predominant,  was  no  friend  of 
the  cardinal.  It  was  not  probable  that  he  would  dimin- 
ish the  effect  of  that  vague  censure  mingled  with  faint 
commendation  which  characterized  Margaret's  instruc- 
tions by  any  laudatory  suggestions  of  his  own.  He  was 
directed  to  speak  in  general  terms  of  the  advance  of 
heresy  and  the  increasing  penury  of  the  exchequer. 
He  was  to  request  two  hundred  thousand  crowns  toward 
the  lottery  which  the  regent  proposed  to  set  up  as  a 
financial  scheme.  He  was  to  represent  that  the  duchess 
had  tried  unsuccessfully  every  conceivable  means  of 
accommodating  the  quarrel  between  the  cardinal  and 
the  seigniors.  She  recognized  Granvelle's  great  ca- 
pacity, experience,  zeal,  and  devotion,— for  all  which 
qualities  she  made  much  of  him, — while,  on  the  other 
hand,  she  felt  that  it  would  be  a  great  inconvenience, 
and  might  cause  a  revolt  of  the  country,  were  she 
to  retain  him  in  the  Netherlands  against  the  will  of  the 
seigniors.  These  motives  had  compelled  her,  the  mes- 
senger was  to  add,  to  place  both  views  of  the  subject 
before  the  eyes  of  the  king.  Armenteros  was,  further- 
more, to  narrate  the  circumstances  of  the  interviews 
which  had  recently  taken  place  between  herself  and  the 
leaders  of  the  opposition  party.^ 

From  the  tenor  of  these  instructions  it  was  sufficiently 
obvious  that  Margaret  of  Parma  was  not  anxious  to 
retain  the  cardinal,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  she  was 
beginning  already  to  feel  alarm  at  the  dangerous  posi- 
tion in  which  she  found  herself.  A  few  days  after  the 
three  nobles  had  despatched  their  last  letter  to  the  king, 
they  had  handed  her  a  formal  remonstrance.     In  this 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  ubi  sup. 


1563]     EEMONSTRANCE  OF   THE   THREE  SEIGNIORS     15 

document  they  stated  their  conviction  that  the  country- 
was  on  the  highroad  to  ruin,  both  as  regarded  his  Maj- 
esty's service  and  the  commonweal.  The  exchequer 
was  bare,  the  popular  discontent  daily  increasing,  the 
fortresses  on  the  frontier  in  a  dilapidated  condition.  It 
was  to  be  apprehended  daily  that  merchants  and  other 
inhabitants  of  the  provinces  would  be  arrested  in  foreign 
countries  to  satisfy  the  debts  owed  by  his  Majesty.  To 
provide  against  all  these  evils,  but  one  course,  it  was 
suggested,  remained  to  the  government— to  summon  the 
States-General,  and  to  rely  upon  their  counsel  and  sup- 
port. The  nobles,  however,  forbore  to  press  this  point, 
by  reason  of  the  prohibition  which  the  regent  had  re- 
ceived from  the  king.  They  suggested,  however,  that 
such  an  interdiction  could  have  been  dictated  only  by  a 
distrust  created  between  his  Majesty  and  the  estates 
by  persons  having  no  love  for  either,  and  who  were 
determined  to  leave  no  resource  by  which  the  distress  of 
the  country  could  be  prevented.  The  nobles,  therefore, 
begged  her  Highness  not  to  take  it  amiss  if,  so  long  as 
the  king  was  indisposed  to  make  other  arrangements 
for  the  administration  of  the  provinces,  they  should 
abstain  from  appearing  at  the  state  council.  They  pre- 
ferred to  cause  the  shadow  at  last  to  disappear  which 
they  had  so  long  personated.  In  conclusion,  however, 
they  expressed  their  determination  to  do  their  duty  in 
their  several  governments,  and  to  serve  the  regent  to 
the  best  of  their  abilities.^ 

After  this  remonstrance  had  been  delivered,  the  Prince 
of  Orange,  Count  Horn,  and  Count  Egmont  abstained 
entirely  from  the  sessions  of  the  state  council.     She  was 

1  Hoofd,  ii.  43.  Compare  Correspondance  de  Gruill.  le  Tacit., 
iii.  50  (note  by  M.  Gachard). 


16  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

left  alone  with  the  cardinal,  whom  she  already  hated, 
and  with  his  two  shadows,  Viglius  and  Berlaymont. 

Armenteros,  after  a  month  spent  on  his  journey 
arrived  in  Spain,  and  was  soon  admitted  to  an  audience 
by  Philip.  In  his  first  interview,  which  lasted  four 
hours,!  he  read  to  the  king  all  the  statements  and  docu- 
ments with  which  he  had  come  provided,  and  humbly 
requested  a  prompt  decision.  Such  a  result  was  of 
course  out  of  the  question.  Moreover,  the  Cortes  of 
Tarragona,  which  happened  then  to  be  in  session,  and 
which  required  the  royal  attention,  supplied  the  mon- 
arch with  a  fresh  excuse  for  indulging  in  his  habitual 
va,CLllation.2  Meantime,  by  way  of  obtaining  additional 
counsel  in  so  grave  an  emergency,  he  transmitted  the 
letters  of  the  nobles,  together  with  the  other  papers,  to 
the  Duke  of  Alva,  and  requested  his  opinion  on  the  sub- 
ject.^   Alva  replied  with  the  roar  of  a  wild  beast. 

"Every  time,"  he  wrote,  "that  I  see  the  despatches  of 
those  three  Flemish  seigniors  my  rage  is  so  much  ex- 
cited that  if  I  did  not  use  all  possible  efforts  to  restrain 
it  my  sentiments  would  seem  those  of  a  madman."* 
After  this  splenitive  exordium  he  proceeded  to  express 
the  opinion  that  all  the  hatred  and  complaints  against 
the  cardinal  had  arisen  from  his  opposition  to  the  con- 
vocation of  the  States-General.  With  regard  to  persons 
who  had  so  richly  deserved  such  chastisement,  he  rec- 
ommended "  that  their  heads  should  be  taken  off ;  but, 

1  Strada,  iii.  130.  2  Jbifl. 

'  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  271. 

*  "  Cada  vez  que  veo  los  despachos  de  aquellos  tres  senores  me 
muevan  la  colera,  de  manera  que  si  no  procurasse  mucho  templarla, 
creo  pareceria  a  V.  M.  mi  opinion  de  hombre  frenetico,"  etc.— 
G.  V.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  175-177. 


1563]  LETTER  OF  ALVA  17 

until  this  could  be  done,  that  the  king  should  dissemble 
with  them."  He  advised  Philip  not  to  reply  to  their 
letters,  but  merely  to  intimate,  through  the  regent,  that 
their  reasons  for  the  course  proposed  by  them  did  not 
seem  satisfactory.  He  did  not  prescribe  this  treatment 
of  the  case  as  ''  a  true  remedy,  but  only  as  a  palliative ; 
because  for  the  moment  only  weak  medicines  could  be 
employed,  from  which,  however,  but  small  effect  could 
be  anticipated."  ^  As  to  recalling  the  cardinal,  "  as  they 
had  the  impudence  to  propose  to  his  Majesty,"  the  duke 
most  decidedly  advised  against  the  step.  In  the  mean- 
time, and  before  it  should  be  practicable  to  proceed  "  to 
that  vigorous  chastisement  already  indicated,"  he  ad- 
vised separating  the  nobles  as  much  as  possible  by 
administering  flattery  and  deceitful  caresses  to  Egmont, 
who  might  be  entrapped  more  easily  than  the  others. 

Here,  at  least,  was  a  man  who  knew  his  own  mind. 
Here  was  a  servant  who  could  be  relied  upon  to  do  his 
master's  bidding  whenever  this  master  should  require 
his  help.  The  vigorous  explosion  of  wrath  with  which 
the  duke  thus  responded  to  the  first  symptoms  of  what 
he  regarded  as  rebellion  gave  a  feeble  intimation  of  the 
tone  which  he  would  assume  when  that  movement  should 
have  reached  a  more  advanced  stage.  It  might  be 
guessed  what  kind  of  remedies  he  would  one  day  pre- 
scribe in  place  of  the  "mild  medicines"  in  which  he  so 
reluctantly  acquiesced  for  the  present. 

While  this  had  been  the  course  pursued  by  the 
seigniors,  the  regent,  and  the  king,  in  regard  to  that 
all-absorbing  subject  of  Netherland  politics,  the  struggle 

1  " .  .  .  que  no  se  pueden  aplicar  sino  medicinas  muy  flojas  y 
dudando  mucho  de  la  operacion  que  podran  hazer."— G.  v.  Prinst., 
Archives,  etc.,  i.  175-177. 
VOL.  II.— 2 


18  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1563 

against  Granvelle,  the  cardinal,  in  his  letters  to  Pliilip, 
had  been  painting  the  situation  by  minute  daily  touches, 
in  a  manner  of  which  his  pencil  alone  possessed  the  secret. 

Still  maintaining  the  attitude  of  an  injured  but  for- 
giving Christian,  he  spoke  of  the  nobles  in  a  tone  of 
gentle  sorrow.  He  deprecated  any  rising  of  the  royal 
wrath  in  his  behalf;  he  would  continue  to  serve  the 
gentlemen,  whether  they  would  or  no;  he  was  most 
anxious  lest  any  considerations  on  his  account  should 
interfere  with  the  king's  decision  in  regard  to  the  course 
to  be  pursued  in  the  Netherlands.  At  the  same  time, 
notwithstanding  these  general  professions  of  benevolence 
toward  the  nobles,  he  represented  them  as  broken 
spendthrifts,  wishing  to  create  general  confusion  in 
order  to  escape  from  personal  liabilities ;  as  conspirators 
who  had  placed  themselves  within  the  reach  of  the  at- 
torney-general;^ as  ambitious  malcontents  who  were 
disposed  to  overthrow  the  royal  authority,  and  to  sub- 
stitute an  aristocratic  republic  upon  its  ruins.  He  would 
say  nothing  to  prejudice  the  king's  mind  against  these 
gentlemen,  but  he  took  care  to  omit  nothing  which  could 
possibly  accomplish  that  result.  He  described  them  as 
systematically  opposed  to  the  policy  which  he  knew  lay 
nearest  the  king's  heart,  and  as  determined  to  assassinate 
the  faithful  minister  who  was  so  resolutely  carrjnng  it 
out,  if  his  removal  could  be  effected  in  no  other  way. 
He  spoke  of  the  state  of  religion  as  becoming  more  and 
more  unsatisfactory,  and  bewailed  the  difficulty  with 
which  he  could  procure  the  burning  of  heretics— diffi- 
culties originating  in  the  reluctance  of  men  from  whose 
elevated  rank  better  things  might  have  been  expected. 

As  Granvelle  is  an  important  personage,  as  his  char- 
1  Papiers  d'£tat,  vii.  18,  19,  sqq. 


1563]        MINIATUEE  PAINTING  BY  GEANVELLE  19 

acter  has  been  alternately  the  subject  of  much  censure 
and  of  more  applause,  and  as  the  epoch  now  described 
was  the  one  in  which  the  causes  of  the  great  convulsion 
were  rapidly  germinating,  it  is  absolutely  necessary  that 
the  reader  should  be  placed  in  a  position  to  study  the 
main  character  as  painted  by  his  own  hand—  the  hand 
in  which  were  placed,  at  that  moment,  the  destinies  of  a 
mighty  empire.  It  is  the  historian's  duty,  therefore,  to 
hang  the  picture  of  his  administration  fully  in  the  light. 
At  the  moment  when  the  11th  of  March  letter  was  de- 
spatched, the  cardinal  represented  Orange  and  Egmont 
as  endeavoring  by  every  method  of  menace  or  blandish- 
ment to  induce  all  the  grand  seigniors  and  petty  nobles 
to  join  in  the  league  against  himself.  They  had  quar- 
reled with  Aerschot  and  Aremberg,  they  had  more  than 
half  seduced  Berlaymont,  and  they  stigmatized  all  who 
refused  to  enter  into  their  league  as  cardinalists  and 
familiars  of  the  Inquisition.^  He  protested  that  he 
should  regard  their  ill  will  with  indifference,  were  he 
not  convinced  that  he  was  himself  only  a  pretext,  and 
that  their  designs  were  really  much  deeper.^  Since  the 
return  of  Monti  gny,  the  seigniors  had  established  a 
league  which  that  gentleman  and  his  brother.  Count 
Horn,  had  both  joined.  He  would  say  nothing  concern- 
ing the  defamatory  letters  and  pamphlets  of  which  he 
was  the  constant  object,  for  he  wished  no  heed  taken  of 
matters  which  concerned  exclusively  himself.  Notwith- 
standing this  disclaimer,  however,  he  rarely  omitted  to 
note  the  appearance  of  all  such  productions  for  his 
Majesty's  especial  information.  *'  It  was  better  to  calm 
men's  spirits,"  he  said,  "than  to  excite  them."    As  to 

1  Papiers  d':fctat,  vii.  5,  11-21,  18,  19,  sqq. 

2  Ibid. 


20  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1563 

fostering  quarrels  among  the  seigniors,  as  the  king  had 
recommended,  that  was  hardly  necessary,  for  discord 
was  fast  sowing  its  own  seeds.  "It  gave  him  much 
pain,"  he  said,  with  a  Christian  sigh,  "to  observe  that 
such  dissensions  had  already  arisen,  and  unfortunately 
on  his  account."  ^  He  then  proceeded  circumstantially 
to  describe  the  quarrel  between  Aerschot  and  Egmont, 
already  narrated  by  the  regent,  omitting  in  his  statement 
no  particular  which  could  make  Egmont  reprehensible 
in  the  royal  eyes.  He  likewise  painted  the  quarrel 
between  the  same  noble  and  Ai-emberg,  to  which  he  had 
already  alluded  in  previous  letters  to  the  king,  adding 
that  many  gentlemen,  and  even  the  more  prudent  part  of 
the  people,  were  dissatisfied  with  the  course  of  the 
grandees,  and  that  he  was  taking  underhand  but  dex- 
terous means  to  confirm  them  in  such  sentiments.^  He 
instructed  Philip  how  to  reply  to  the  letter  addressed  to 
him,  but  begged  his  Majesty  not  to  hesitate  to  sacrifice 
him  if  the  interests  of  his  crown  should  seem  to  re- 
quire it.3 

With  regard  to  religious  matters,  he  repeatedly  de- 
plored that,  notwithstanding  his  own  exertions  and 
those  of  Madame  de  Parma,  things  were  not  going  on 
as  he  desired,  but,  on  the  contrary,  very  badly.  "  For 
the  love  of  God  and  the  service  of  the  holy  religion,"  he 
cried  out  fervently,  "put  your  royal  hand  valiantly  to 
the  work,  otherwise  we  have  only  to  exclaim,  'Help, 
Lord,  for  we  perish ! ' "  *  Having  uttered  this  pious  ex- 
hortation in  the  ear  of  a  man  who  needed  no  stimulant 

1  "Pero  pSsa  me  que  la  primera  causa  tome  fundamento  sobre 
lo  que  me  toca."— Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  5,  11-21,  18,  19,  sqq. 

2  "  Y  yo  procure  diestramente  y  so  mano  de  informarlos  como 
conviene,"  etc.— Ibid.  ^  ibid.  *  Ibid.,  vii.  83. 


1563]  THE  CARDINAL'S  INSINUATIONS  21 

in  the  path  of  persecution,  he  proceeded  to  express  his 
regrets  that  the  judges  and  other  officers  were  not  taking 
in  hand  the  chastisement  of  heresy  with  becoming  vigor.^ 

Yet  at  that  very  moment  Peter  Titelmann  was  raging 
through  Flanders,  tearing  whole  families  out  of  bed  and 
burning  them  to  ashes,  with  such  utter  disregard  to  all 
laws  or  forms  as  to  provoke  in  the  very  next  year  a 
solemn  protest  from  the  four  estates  of  Flanders ;  and 
Titelmann  was  but  one  of  a  dozen  inquisitors. 

Granvelle,  however,  could  find  little  satisfaction  in 
the  exertions  of  subordinates  so  long  as  men  in  high 
station  were  remiss  in  their  duties.  The  Marquis  Berg- 
hen,  he  informed  Philip,  showed  but  little  disposition 
to  put  down  heresy  in  Valenciennes,  while  Montigny 
was  equally  remiss  at  Tournay.^  They  were  often  heard 
to  say,  to  any  who  chose  to  listen,  that  it  was  not  right 
to  inflict  the  punishment  of  death  for  matters  of  reli- 
gion.^ This  sentiment,  uttered  in  that  age  of  blood  and 
fire,  and  crowning  the  memory  of  those  unfortunate 
nobles  with  eternal  honor,  was  denounced  by  the  church-^ 
man  as  criminal  and  deserving  of  castigation.  He 
intimated,  moreover,  that  these  pretenses  of  clemency 
were  mere  hypocrisy,  and  that  self-interest  was  at  the 
bottom  of  their  compassion.  '^  'T  is  very  black,"  said  he,* 
"  when  interest  governs ;  but  these  men  are  all  in  debt, 
so  deeply  that  they  owe  their  very  souls.  They  are 
seeking  every  means  of  escaping  from  their  obligations, 
and  are  most  desirous  of  creating  general  confusion." 
As  to  the  Prince  of  Orange,  the  cardinal  asserted  that 
he  owed  nine  hundred  thousand  florins,  and  had  hardly 

1  Papiers  d'fitat,  vii.  33.  2  Ibid.,  vii.  45-51.  3  n^id. 

*  "  Y  es  la  negra  quando  domina  el  interesse  y  no  me  espanto  que 
deven  todos  el  alma  y  cada  dia  gastan  mas,"  etc.— Ibid. 


22  THE   RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH   REPUBLIC  [1563 

twenty-five  thousand  a  year  clear  income,  while  he  spent 
ninety  thousand,  having  counts,  barons,  and  gentlemen 
in  great  numbers  in  his  household.^  At  this  point  he 
suggested  that  it  might  be  well  to  find  employment  for 
some  of  these  grandees  in  Spain  and  other  dominions  of 
his  Majesty,  adding  that  perhaps  Orange  might  accept 
the  viceroyalty  of  Sicily.^ 

Resuming  the  religious  matter  a  few  weeks  later,  he 
expressed  himself  a  little  more  cheerfully.  ^'  We  have 
made  so  much  outcry,"  said  he,  **  that  at  last  Marquis 
Berghen  has  been  forced  to  burn  a  couple  of  heretics  at 
Valenciennes.  Thus  it  is  obvious,"  moralized  the  car- 
dinal, "that  if  he  were  really  willing  to  apply  the 
remedy  in  that  place,  much  progress  might  be  made, 
but  that  we  can  do  but  little  so  long  as  he  remains  in 
the  government  of  the  provinces  and  refuses  to  assist 
us."^  In  a  subsequent  letter  he  again  uttered  com- 
plaints against  the  marquis  and  Montignj'^,  who  were 
evermore  his  scapegoats  and  bugbears.  Berghen  will 
give  us  no  aid,  he  wrote,  despite  of  all  the  letters  we 
send  him.  He  absents  himself  for  private  and  political 
reasons.  Montigny  has  eaten  meat  in  Lent,  as  the 
Bishop  of  Tournay  informs  me.*  Both  he  and  the 
marquis  say  openly  that  it  is  not  right  to  shed  blood  for 
matters  of  faith,  so  that  the  king  can  judge  how  much 
can  be  effected  with  such  coadjutors.^     Berghen  avoids 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  45-51.  2  ibid.,  vii.  51. 

'  " .  .  .  y  se  ha  gridado  tanto  que  al  cabo  el  Marques  de  Berg- 
hes  ha  hecho  quemar  dos  hereges  en  Valencianes  sin  ruydo  .  .  . 
que  si  de  veras  se  quiriesse  atender  el  remedio  de  aquella  tierra 
mucho  se  podria  aproveehar ;  pero  no  lo  podremos  hazer  mientras 
est^  en  quel  govierno  si  el  no  quiere  ny  de  otra  manera  que  por  su 
meno." — Ibid.,  vii.  69. 

*  Ibid.,  vii.  75.  6  Ibid. 


1563]  THE  CARDINAL'S   SCAPEGOATS  23 

the  persecution  of  heretics,  wrote  the  cardinal  again,  a 
month  later,  to  Secretary  Perez.  He  has  gone  to  Spa 
for  his  health,  although  those  who  saw  him  last  say  he 
is  fat  and  hearty.^  Granvelle  added,  however,  that  they 
had  at  last  '^  burned  one  more  preacher  alive."  The 
heretic,  he  stated,  had  feigned  repentance  to  save  his  life, 
but  finding  that,  at  any  rate,  his  head  would  be  cut  off 
as  a  dogmatizer,  he  retracted  his  recantation.  ''  So,"  con- 
cluded the  cardinal,  complacently,  ''  they  burned  him."  2 
He  chronicled  the  sayings  and  doings  of  the  principal 
personages  in  the  Netherlands,  for  the  instruction  of  the 
king,  with  great  regularity,  insinuating  suspicions  when 
unable  to  furnish  evidence,  and  adding  charitable  apol- 
ogies, which  he  knew  would  have  but  small  effect  upon 
the  mind  of  his  correspondent.  Thus  he  sent  an  account 
of  a  ''very  secret  meeting"  held  by  Orange,  Egmont, 
Horn,  Montigny,  and  Berghen  at  the  abbey  of  La  For- 
est,^ near  Brussels,  adding  that  he  did  not  know  what 
they  had  been  doing  there,  and  was  at  loss  what  to 
suspect„  He  would  be  most  happy,  he  said,  to  put  the 
best  interpretation  upon  their  actions,  but  he  could  not 
help  remembering  with  great  sorrow  the  observation  so 
recently  made  by  Orange  to  Montigny  that  one  day  they 
should  be  stronger.  Later  in  the  year  the  cardinal  in- 
formed the  king  that  the  same  nobles  were  holding  a 
conference  at  Weerdt,  that  he  had  not  learned  what  had 
been  transacted  there,  but  thought  the  affair  very  sus- 
picious.* Philip  immediately  communicated  the  intelli- 
gence to  Alva,  together  with  an  expression  of  Granvelle's 

1  "Bueno  y  gordo."— Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  105. 

2  "Y  assi  le  quemaron."— Ibid. 

3  Ibid.,  vii.  69. 

*  Ibid.,  vii.  266.     Correspondance  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  275. 


24  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

fears  and  of  his  own  that  a  popular  outbreak  would  be 
the  consequence  of  the  continued  presence  of  the  minister 
in  the  Netherlands.^ 

The  cardinal  omitted  nothing  in  the  way  of  anecdote 
or  innuendo  which  could  injure  the  character  of  the  lead- 
ing nobles,  with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  Count  Egmont. 
With  this  important  personage,  whose  character  he  well 
understood,  he  seemed  determined,  if  possible,  to  main- 
tain friendly  relations.  There  was  a  deep  policy  in  this 
desire,  to  which  we  shall  advert  hereafter.  The  other 
seigniors  were  described  in  general  terms  as  disposed  to 
overthrow  the  royal  authority.  They  were  bent  upon 
Granvelle's  downfall  as  the  first  step,  because,  that  being 
accomplished,  the  rest  would  follow  as  a  matter  of 
eourse.2  "They  intend,"  said  he,  "to  reduce  the  state 
into  the  form  of  a  republic,  in  which  the  king  shall  have 
no  power  except  to  do  their  bidding."  ^  He  added  that 
he  saw  with  regret  so  many  German  troops  gathering 
on  the  borders,  for  he  believed  them  to  be  in  the  control 
of  the  disaffected  nobles  of  the  Netherlands.*  Having 
made  this  grave  insinuation,  he  proceeded  in  the  same 
breath  to  express  his  anger  at  a  statement  said  to  have 
been  made  by  Orange  and  Egmont,  to  the  effect  that  he 
had  charged  them  with  intending  to  excite  a  civil  com- 
motion, an  idea,  he  added,  which  had  never  entered  his 
head.^    In  the  same  paragraph  he  poured  into  the  most 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  277. 

2  "  Quieren  dar  en  mi  primero  porque  hecho  esto  va  lo  demas  su 
passo."— Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  167. 

3  "  Y  querrian  reduzir  esto  en  forma  de  republica,  en  la  qual  no 
pudiesse  el  Rey  sino  que  ellos  qiiisiessen."— Ibid.,  vii.  165. 

*  Ibid.  CompareGr.v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.    Supplement,  14-16. 
5  Papiers    d'Etat,   vii.   167 :    "  Procuravan    de  levantar  estos 
pueblos  .  .  .  lo  quele  jamas  me  passo  por  consamiento." 


1563]     DEADLY  POISON  AND  FEEBLE  ANTIDOTES       25 

suspicious  ear  that  ever  listened  to  a  tale  of  treason 
his  conviction  that  the  nobles  were  planning  a  republic 
by  the  aid  of  foreign  troops,  and  uttered  a  complaint 
that  these  nobles  had  accused  him  of  suspecting  them. 
As  for  the  Prince  of  Orange,  he  was  described  as  eter- 
nally boasting  of  his  influence  in  Germany,  and  the 
great  things  which  he  could  effect  hy  means  of  his  con- 
nections there,  ''  so  that,"  added  the  cardinal,  ^'  we  hear 
no  other  song." 

He  had  much  to  say  concerning  the  projects  of  these 
grandees  to  abolish  all  the  councils  but  that  of  state,  of 
which  body  they  intended  to  obtain  the  entire  control. 
Marquis  Berghen  was  represented  as  being  at  the  bottom 
of  all  these  intrigues.  The  general  and  evident  intention 
was  to  make  a  thorough  change  in  the  form  of  govern- 
ment.i  The  marquis  meant  to  command  in  everything, 
and  the  duchess  would  soon  have  nothing  to  do  in  the 
provinces  as  regent  for  the  king.  In  fact,  Philip  himself 
would  be  equally  powerless,  "for,"  said  the  cardinal, 
"  they  will  have  succeeded  in  putting  your  Majesty  com- 
pletely under  guardianship."  ^  He  added,  moreover, 
that  the  seigniors,  in  order  to  gain  favor  with  the  people 
and  with  the  estates,  had  allowed  them  to  acquire  so 
much  power  that  they  would  respond  to  any  request 
for  subsidies  by  a  general  popular  revolt.  "  This  is  the 
simple  truth,"  said  Granvelle,  "and  moreover,  by  the 
same  process,  in  a  very  few  days  there  will  likewise  be 
no  religion  left  in  the  land."^  When  the  deputies  of 
some  of  the  states,  a  few  weeks  later,  had  been  irregu- 

1  "En  fin  el  punto  es  que  querrian  mudar  esta  forma  de  govi- 
emo."— Papiers  d'fitat,  vii.  186,  187. 

2  " ,  .  .  pues  havi-ian  acabado  de  poner  la  en  tutela."— Ibid. 

3  Ibid. 


26  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1563 

larly  convened  in  Brussels  for  financial  purposes,  the 
cardinal  informed  the  monarch  that  the  nobles  were 
endeavoring  to  conciliate  their  good  will  by  offering 
them  a  splendid  series  of  festivities  and  banquets. 

He  related  various  anecdotes  which  came  to  liis  ears 
from  time  to  time,  all  tending  to  excite  suspicions  as  to 
the  loyalty  and  orthodoxy  of  the  principal  nobles.  A 
gentleman  coming  from  Burgundy  had  lately,  as  he  in- 
formed the  king,  been  dining  with  the  Prince  of  Orange, 
with  whom  Horn  and  Montigny  were  then  lodging.  At 
table,  Montigny  called  out  in  a  very  loud  voice  to  the 
strange  cavalier,  who  was  seated  at  a  great  distance 
from  him,  to  ask  if  there  were  many  Huguenots  in  Bur- 
.gundy.  No,  replied  the  gentleman,  nor  would  they  be 
permitted  to  exist  there.  Then  there  can  be  very  few 
people  of  intelligence  in  that  province,  retm-ned  Mon- 
tigny, for  those  who  have  any  wit  are  mostly  all  Hugue- 
nots.^ The  Prince  of  Orange  here  endeavored  to  put  a 
stop  to  the  conversation,  saying  that  the  Burgundians 
were  very  right  to  remain  as  they  were ;  upon  which 
Montigny  affirmed  that  he  had  heard  masses  enough 
lately  to  last  him  for  three  months.^  These  things  may 
be  jests,  commented  Granvelle,  but  they  are  very  bad 
ones ;  ^  and  't  is  evident  that  such  a  man  is  an  improper 
instrument  to  remedy  the  state  of  religious  affairs  in 
Tournay. 

At  another  large  party,  the  king  was  faithfully  in- 
formed by  the  same  chronicler  *  that  Marquis  Berghen 
had  been  teasing  the  Duke  of  Aerschot  very  maUciously 
because  he  would  not  join  the  league.     The  duke  had 

1  Papiers  d'fitat,  vii.  187,  188.  2  ibid. 

3  "Devian  de  ser  burlas  pero  malas  me  parecen."— Ibid. 

4  Ibid.,  vii.  190-194. 


1563]  BEEGHEN'S    IMPRUDENCE  27 

responded,  as  he  had  formerly  done  to  Egmont,  that  his 
Majesty  was  not  to  receive  laws  from  his  vassals ;  adding 
that,  for  himself,  he  meant  to  follow  in  the  loyal  track 
of  his  ancestors,  fearing  God  and  honoring  the  king. 
In  short,  said  Granvelle,  he  answered  them  with  so  much 
wisdom  that,  although  they  had  never  a  high  opinion  of 
his  capacity,  they  were  silenced.  This  conversation  had 
been  going  on  before  all  the  servants,  the  marquis  being 
especially  vociferous,  although  the  room  was  quite  full 
of  them.  As  soon  as  the  cloth  was  removed,  and  while 
some  of  the  lackeys  still  remained,  Berghen  had  resumed 
the  conversation.  He  said  he  was  of  the  same  mind  as 
his  ancestor,  John  of  Berghen,  had  been,  who  had  once 
told  the  king's  grandfather,  Philip  the  Fair,  that  if  his 
Majesty  was  bent  on  his  own  perdition,  he  had  no  dis- 
position to  ruin  himself.  If  the  present  monarch  means 
to  lose  these  provinces  by  governing  them  as  he  did 
govern  them,  the  marquis  afl&rmed  that  he  had  no  wish 
to  lose  the  little  property  that  he  himself  possessed  in 
the  country.  "  But  if,"  argued  the  Duke  of  Aerschot, 
"the  king  absolutely  refuse  to  do  what  you  demand  of 
him— what  then?"  "Par  la  cordieu!^^  responded  Berg- 
hen, in  a  rage, "  we  will  let  him  see " ;  whereupon  aU 
became  silent.^ 

Granvelle  implored  the  king  to  keep  these  things  en- 
tirely to  himself,  adding  tliat  it  was  quite  necessary  for 
his  Majesty  to  learn  in  this  manner  what  were  the  real 
dispositions  of  the  gentlemen  of  the  provinces.  It  was 
also  stated  in  the  same  letter  that  a  ruffian  Genoese, 
who  had  been  ordered  out  of  the  Netherlands  by  the 

1  "  '  Que  seria? '  respondio  el  Marques  eon  colera,  '  par  la  cordieu, 
nous  luy  ferons  voir ! '  Sobre  que  callaron  todos."— Papiers  d'fitat, 
vii.  190-194. 


28  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

regent  because  of  a  homicide  lie  had  committed,  was 
kept  at  Weerdt,  by  Count  Horn,  for  the  purpose  of  mur- 
dering the  cardinal.^ 

He  affirmed  that  he  was  not  allowed  to  request  the 
expulsion  of  the  assassin  from  the  count's  house ;  but 
that  he  would  take  care,  nevertheless,  that  neither  this 
ruffian  nor  any  other  should  accomplish  his  purpose. 
A  few  weeks  afterward,  expressing  his  joy  at  the  con- 
tradiction of  a  report  that  Philip  had  himself  been 
assassinated,  GranveUe  added:  ''I  too,  who  am  but  a 
worm  in  comparison,  am  threatened  on  so  many  sides 
that  many  must  consider  me  already  dead.  Nevertheless, 
I  will  endeavor,  with  God's  help,  to  live  as  long  as  I  can, 
and  if  they  kill  me,  I  hope  they  will  not  gain  every- 
thing." 2  Yet,  with  characteristic  Jesuitism,  the  cardinal 
could  not  refrain,  even  in  the  very  letter  in  which  he 
detailed  the  rebellious  demonstrations  of  Berghen  and 
the  murderous  schemes  of  Horn,  to  protest  that  he  did 
not  say  these  things  ''  to  prejudice  his  Majesty  against  any 
one,  but  only  that  it  might  be  known  to  what  a  height 
the  impudence  was  rising."  ^  Certainly  the  king  and  the 
ecclesiastic,  like  the  Roman  soothsayers,  would  have 
laughed  in  each  other's  face,  couli  they  have  met,  over 
the  hoUowness  of  such  demonstrations.  Granvelle's 
letters  were  filled,  for  the  greater  part,  with  pictures  of 
treason,  stratagem,  and  bloody  intentions,  fabricated 
mostly  out  of  reports,  table-talk,  disjointed  chat  in  the 
careless  freedom  of  domestic  intercourse,  while  at  the 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  190-194. 

2  Coirespondaneo  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  284. 

3  "No  digo  esto  parer  alterar  a  V.  M.  contra  nadie,  mas  solo 
paraque  conosea  que  creee  la  desverguenga,"  etc.— Papiers  d'Etat, 
vii.  190-194. 


1563]  THE  MOEAL  POINTED  29 

same  time  a  margin  was  always  left  to  express  his  own 
wounded  sense  of  the  injurious  suspicions  uttered 
against  him  by  the  various  subjects  of  his  letters.  "  God 
knows,"  said  he  to  Perez,  "that  I  always  speak  of  them 
with  respect,  which  is  more  than  they  do  of  me.  But 
God  forgive  them  all.  In  times  like  these,  one  must  hold 
one's  tongue.  One  must  keep  still,  in  order  not  to  stir 
up  a  hornets'  nest."  ^ 

In  short,  the  cardinal,  little  by  little,  during  the  last 
year  of  his  residence  in  the  Netherlands,  was  enabled  to 
spread  a  canvas  before  his  sovereign's  eye,  in  which 
certain  prominent  figures,  highly  colored  by  patiently 
accumulated  touches,  were  represented  as  driving  a 
whole  nation,  against  its  own  will,  into  manifest  revolt. 
The  estates  and  the  people,  he  said,  were  already  tired 
of  the  proceedings  of  the  nobles,  and  those  personages 
would  find  themselves  very  much  mistaken  in  thinking 
that  men  who  had  anything  to  lose  would  follow  them 
when  they  began  a  rebellion  against  his  Majesty.^  On 
the  whole,  he  was  not  desirous  of  prolonging  his  own 
residence,  although,  to  do  him  justice,  he  was  not  influ- 
enced by  fear.  He  thought  or  affected  to  think  that  the  "^ 
situation  was  one  of  a  factitious  popular  discontent, 
procured  by  the  intrigues  of  a  few  ambitious  and  im- 
poverished Catilines  and  Cethegi — not  a  rising  rebellion 
such  as  the  world  had  never  seen,  born  of  the  slowly 
awakened  wrath  of  a  whole  people,  after  the  martyrdom  1/ 
of  many  years.  The  remedy  that  he  recommended  was 
that  his  Majesty  should  come  in  person  to  the  provinces. 
The  monarch  would  cure  the  whole  disorder  as  soon  as 

^  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  291:  "Por  no  irritar  cra- 
brones." 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  264. 


30  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

he  appeared,  said  the  cardinal,  by  merely  making  the 
sign  of  the  cross.^  Whether,  indeed,  the  rapidly  in- 
creasing cancer  of  national  discontent  would  prove  a 
mere  king's  evil,  to  be  healed  by  the  royal  touch,  as 
many  persons  besides  Granvelle  believed,  was  a  point 
not  doomed  to  be  tested.  From  that  day  forward  Philip 
began  to  hold  out  hopes  that  he  would  come  to  administer 
the  desired  remedy,  but  even  then  it  was  the  opinion  of 
good  judges  that  he  would  give  millions  rather  than 
make  his  appearance  in  the  Netherlands.^  It  was  even 
the  hope  of  William  of  Orange  that  the  king  would 
visit  the  provinces.  He  expressed  his  desire,  in  a  letter 
to  Lazarus  Schwendi,  that  his  sovereign  should  come  in 
person,  that  he  might  see  whether  it  had  been  right  to 
sow  so  much  distrust  between  himself  and  his  loyal  sub- 
jects.^ The  prince  asserted  that  it  was  impossible  for 
any  person  not  on  the  spot  to  imagine  the  falsehoods 
and  calumnies  circulated  by  Granvelle  and  his  friends, 
accusing  Orange  and  his  associates  of  rebellion  and 
heresy,  in  the  most  infamous  manner  in  the  world.  He 
added,  in  conclusion,  that  he  could  write  no  more,  for 
the  mere  thought  of  the  manner  in  which  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Netherlands  was  carried  on  filled  him  with 
disgust  and  rage.*  This  letter,  together  with  one  in  a 
similar  strain  from  Egmont,  was  transmitted  by  the 
valiant  and  highly  intellectual  soldier  to  whom  they 
were  addressed  to  the  King  of  Spain,  with  an  entreaty 
that  he  would  take  warning  from  the  bitter  truths  which 
they  contained.     The  colonel,  who  was  a  most  trusty 

1  "Y  con  su  presencia  se  podrian  remediar  sanctiguando." — 
Papiers  d'fetat,  vii.  264. 

2  Ibid.,  ix.  184.  3  ibid. 
*  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  290. 


1563]    CORRESPONDENCE  OF  LAZARUS  SCHWENDI       31 

friend  of  Orange,  wrote  afterward  to  Margaret  of 
Parma  in  the  same  spirit,  warmly  urging  her  to  modera- 
tion in  religious  matters.  This  application  highly  en- 
raged Morillon,  the  cardinal's  most  confidential  dependent, 
who  accordingly  conveyed  the  intelligence  to  his  already 
departed  chief,  exclaiming  in  his  letter,  "  What  does  the 
ungrateful  baboon  mean  by  meddling  with  our  affairs  ? 
A  pretty  state  of  things,  truly,  if  kings  are  to  choose  or 
retain  their  ministers  at  the  will  of  the  people;  little 
does  he  know  of  the  disasters  which  would  be  caused  by 
a  relaxation  of  the  edicts."  ^  In  the  same  sense,  the  car- 
dinal, just  before  his  departure,  which  was  now  immi- 
nent, wrote  to  warn  his  sovereign  of  the  seditious  character 
of  the  men  who  were  then  placing  their  breasts  between 
the  people  and  their  butchers.  He  assured  Philip  that 
upon  the  movement  of  those  nobles  depended  the  whole 
existence  of  the  country.  It  was  time  that  they  should 
be  made  to  open  their  eyes.  They  should  be  solicited  in 
every  way  to  abandon  their  evil  courses,  since  the  liberty 
which  they  thought  themselves  defending  was  but  abject 
slavery,  but  subjection  to  a  thousand  base  and  contemp- 
tible personages,  and  to  that  "vile  animal  called  the 
people."  2 

It  is  sufficiently  obvious,  from  the  picture  which  we 
have  now  presented  of  the  respective  attitudes  of  Gran- 
velle,  of  the  seigniors,  and  of  the  nation,  during  the 
whole  of  the  year  1563  and  the  beginning  of  the  follow- 
ing year,  that  a  crisis  was  fast  approaching.  Granvelle 
was,  for  the  moment,  triumphant ;  Orange,  Egmont,  and 
Horn  had  abandoned  the  state  council ;  Philip  could  not 
yet  make  up  his  mind  to  yield  to  the  storm ;  and  Alva 

1  "De  qiioi  se  mesle  cet  ingrat  baboin,"  etc.— Papiers  d'Etat, 
viii.  427.  2  ibid.,  vii.  367. 


v/ 


32  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1563 

howled  defiance  at  the  nobles  and  the  whole  people  of 
the  Netherlands.  Nevertheless,  Margaret  of  Parma  was 
utterly  weary  of  the  minister,  the  cardinal  himself  was 
most  anxious  to  be  gone,  and  the  nation— for  there 
was  a  nation,  however  vile  the  animal  might  be— was 
becoming  daily  more  enraged  at  the  presence  of  a  man 
in  whom,  whether  justly  or  falsely,  it  beheld  the  incar- 
nation of  the  religious  oppression  under  which  it 
groaned.  Meantime,  at  the  close  of  the  year,  a  new 
incident  came  to  add  to  the  gravity  of  the  situation. 
Caspar  Schetz,  Baron  of  Grobbendonck,  gave  a  great 
dinner-party  in  the  month  of  December,  1563.^  This 
personage,  whose  name  was  prominent  for  many  years 
in  the  public  affairs  of  the  nation,  was  one  of  the  four 
brothers  who  formed  a  very  opulent  and  influential  mer- 
cantile establishment.  He  was  the  king's  principal  fac- 
tor and  financial  agent.  He  was  one  of  the  great  pillars 
of  the  bourse  at  Antwerp.  He  was  likewise  a  tolerable 
scholar,  a  detestable  poet,  an  intriguing  politician,  and 
a  corrupt  financier.  He  was  regularly  in  the  pay  of  Sir 
Thomas  Gresham,  to  whom  he  furnished  secret  informa- 
tion, for  whom  he  procured  differential  favors,  and  by 
whose  government  he  was  rewarded  by  gold  chains  and 
presents  of  hard  cash,  bestowed  as  secretly  as  the  equiva- 
lent was  conveyed  adroitly .^  Nevertheless,  although  his 
venality  was  already  more  than  suspected,  and  although 
his  peculations  during  his  long  career  became  so  extensive 
that  he  was  eventually  prosecuted  by  government,  and 
died  before  the  process  was  terminated,  the  Lord  of 
Grobbendonck  was  often  employed  in  most  delicate 
negotiations,  and  at  the  present  epoch  was  a  man  of 
much  importance  in  the  Netherlands. 

1  Hoofd,  i.  39.  2  Burgon,  365,  366,  367. 


1563]  GROBBENDONCK'S  DINNER  33 

The  treasurer-general  accordingly  gave  his  memorable 
banquet  to  a  distinguished  party  of  noblemen.  The 
conversation  during  dinner  turned,  as  was  inevitable, 
upon  the  cardinal.  His  ostentation,  greediness,  inso- 
lence, were  fully  canvassed.  The  wine  flowed  freely  as 
it  always  did  in  those  Flemish  festivities,  the  brains  of 
the  proud  and  reckless  cavaliers  became  hot  with  excite- 
ment, while  still  the  odious  ecclesiastic  was  the  topic  of 
their  conversation,  the  object  alternately  of  fierce  invec- 
tive or  of  scornful  mirth.  The  pompous  display  which 
he  affected  in  his  equipages,  liveries,  and  all  the  appur- 
tenances of  his  household  had  frequently  excited  their 
derision,  and  now  afforded  fresh  matter  for  their  ridicule. 
The  customs  of  Germany,  the  simple  habiliments  in 
which  the  retainers  of  the  greatest  houses  were  arrayed 
in  that  country,  were  contrasted  with  the  tinsel  and  glit- 
ter in  which  the  prelate  pranked  himself.  It  was  pro- 
posed, by  way  of  showing  contempt  for  Granvelle,  that 
a  livery  should  be  forthwith  invented  as  different  as 
possible  from  his  in  general  effect,  and  that  all  the  gen- 
tlemen present  should  indiscriminately  adopt  it  for  their 
own  menials.  Thus  would  the  people  whom  the  cardinal 
wished  to  dazzle  with  his  finery  learn  to  estimate  such 
gauds  at  their  true  value.  It  was  determined  that  some- 
thing extremely  plain  and  in  the  German  fashion  should 
be  selected.  At  the  same  time,  the  company,  now  thor- 
oughly inflamed  with  wine,  and  possessed  by  the  spirit 
of  mockery,  determined  that  a  symbol  should  be  added 
to  the  livery  by  which  the  universal  contempt  for  Gran- 
velle should  be  expressed.  The  proposition  was  hailed 
with  acclamation,  but  who  should  invent  the  hieroglj^h- 
ical  costume?  All  were  reckless  and  ready  enough, 
but  ingenuity  of  device  was  required.    At  last  it  was 

VOL.  II.— 3 


34  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1563 

determine^  to  decide  the  question  by  hazard.  Amid 
shouts  of  hilarity  the  dice  were  thrown.  Those  men 
were  staking  their  lives,  perhaps,  upon  the  issue,  but  the 
reflection  gave  only  a  keener  zest  to  the  game.  Egmont 
won.i  It  was  the  most  fatal  victory  which  he  had  ever 
achieved,  a  more  deadly  prize  even  than  the  trophies  of 
St.-Quentin  and  Gravelines. 

In  a  few  days  afterward  the  retainers  of  the  house  of 
Egmont  surprised  Brussels  by  making  their  appearance 
in  a  new  livery.  Doublet  and  hose  of  the  coarsest  gray, 
and  long  hanging  sleeves,  without  gold  or  silver  lace, 
and  having  but  a  single  ornament,  comprised  the  whole 
costume.  An  emblem  which  seemed  to  resemble  a 
monk's  cowl,  or  a  fool's  cap  and  bells,  was  embroidered 
upon  each  sleeve.  The  device  pointed  at  the  cardinal, 
as  did,  by  contrast,  the  affected  coarseness  of  the  dress. 
There  was  no  doubt  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  hood,  but 
they  who  saw  in  the  symbol  more  resemblance  to  the 
jester's  cap  recalled  certain  biting  expressions  which 
Granvelle  had  been  accustomed  to  use.  He  had  been 
wont,  in  the  days  of  his  greatest  insolence,  to  speak  of  the 
most  eminent  nobles  as  zanies,  lunatics,  and  buffoons. 
The  embroidered  fool's  cap  was  supposed  to  typify  the 
gibe,  and  to  remind  the  arrogant  priest  that  a  Brutus, 
as  in  the  olden  time,  might  be  found  lurking  in  the 
costume  of  the  f ool.^  However  witty  or  appropriate  the 
invention,  the  livery  had  an  immense  success.  Accord- 
ing to  agreement,  the  nobles  who  had  dined  with  the 
treasurer  ordered  it  for  all  their  servants.  Never  did  a 
new  dress  become  so  soon  the  fashion.  The  unpopular- 
ity of  the  minister  assisted  the  quaintness  of  the  device. 

1  Hoofd,  i.  39,  40.     Strada,  iv.  132,  133.     Bentivoglio,  i.  17. 

2  Strada. 


1563]  THE  FOOL'S-CAP  LIVERY  35 

The  fool's-cap  livery  became  the  rage.  Never  was  such 
a  run  upon  the  haberdashers,  mercers,  and  tailors  since 
Brussels  had  been  a  city.  All  the  frieze-cloth  in  Bra- 
bant was  exhausted.  All  the  serge  in  Flanders  was 
clipped  into  monastic  cowls.  The  duchess  at  first 
laughed  with  the  rest,  but  the  cardinal  took  care  that 
the  king  should  be  at  once  informed  upon  the  subject. 
The  regent  was  perhaps  not  extremely  sorry  to  see  the 
man  ridiculed  whom  she  so  cordially  disliked,  and  she 
accepted  the  careless  excuses  made  on  the  subject  by 
Egmont  and  by  Orange  without  severe  criticism.  She 
wrote  to  her  brother  that,  although  the  gentlemen  had 
been  influenced  by  no  evil  intention,  she  had  thought 
it  best  to  exhort  them  not  to  push  the  jest  too  far.^ 
Already,  however,  she  found  that  two  thousand  pairs  of 
sleeves  '^  had  been  made,  and  the  most  she  could  obtain 
was  that  the  fools'  caps,  or  monks'  hoods,  should  in 
future  be  omitted  from  the  livery.^  A  change  was 
accordingly  made  in  the  costume  at  about  the  time  of 
the  cardinal's  departure.  A  bundle  of  arrows,  or  in 
some  instances  a  Avheat-sheaf,  was  substituted  for  the 
cowls.*  Various  interpretations  were  placed  upon  this 
new  emblem.  According  to  the  nobles  themselves,  it 
denoted  the  union  of  all  their  hearts  in  the  king's  ser- 
vice, while  their  enemies  insinuated  that  it  was  obviously 
a  symbol  of  conspiracy.^  The  costume  thus  amended 
was  worn  by  the  gentlemen  themselves,  as  well  as  by 
their  servants.  Egmont  dined  at  the  regent's  table, 
after  the  cardinal's  departure,  in  a  camlet  doublet  with 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  294-297. 

2  Ibid.  3  Ibid. 
*  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  455. 

5  Strada,  Hoofd,  Bentivoglio,  ubi  sup. 


36  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1564 

hanging  sleeves,  and  buttons  stamped  with  the  bundle 
of  arrows.  1 

For  the  present,  the  cardinal  affected  to  disapprove 
of  the  fashion  only  from  its  rebellious  tendency.  The 
fools'  caps  and  cowls,  he  meekly  observed  to  Philip, 
were  the  least  part  of  the  offense,  for  an  injury  to  him- 
self could  be  easily  forgiven.  The  wheat-sheaf  and  the 
arrow-bundles,  however,  were  very  vile  things,  for  they 
betokened  and  confirmed  the  existence  of  a  conspiracy 
such  as  never  could  be  tolerated  by  a  prince  who  had 
any  regard  for  Ms  own  authority.^ 

This  incident  of  the  livery  occupied  the  public  atten- 
tion and  inflamed  the  universal  hatred  during  the  later 
months  of  the  minister's  residence  in  the  country. 
Meantime  the  three  seigniors  had  become  very  im- 
patient at  receiving  no  answer  to  their  letter.  Mar- 
garet of  Parma  was  urging  her  brother  to  give  them 
satisfaction,  repeating  to  him  their  bitter  complaints 
that  their  characters  and  conduct  were  the  subject  of 
constant  misrepresentation  to  their  sovereign,  and  pic- 
turing her  own  isolated  condition.  She  represented  her- 
self as  entirely  deprived  of  the  support  of  those  great 
personages,  who,  despite  her  positive  assurances  to  the 
contrary,  persisted  in  believing  that  they  were  held  up 
to  the  king  as  conspirators  and  were  in  danger  of  being 

1  "  Portant  une  caljotte  k  leur  mode  de  camelot  sans  unde,  garnie 
de  boutons  d'argent,  avec  flesclies,  et  le  bonnet  de  mesmes  boutons 
d'argent."— G.  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  263. 

2  "  Muy  ruin  piinto  es  el  de  la  librea  que  ban  sacado  aquellos 
senores  y  sus  adherentes  no  por  la  invencion  de  las  cabe^as  de 
locos  y  capirotes  que  es  lo  menos,  sino  porque  parece  dar  con- 
firmacion  de  liga  cosa  no  gufridera  debaxo  de  un  prineipe  que 
tenga  cuenta  con  su  autboridad  eu  sus  estados."— Papiers  d'^ltat, 
vii.  503. 


1564]  ALVA'S   ADVICE  37 

punished  as  traitors.^  Philip,  on  his  part,  was  conning 
Granvelle's  despatches,  filled  with  hints  of  conspiracy, 
and  holding  counsel  with  Alva,  who  had  already  recom- 
mended the  taking  off  several  heads  for  treason.  The 
Prince  of  Orange,  who  already  had  secret  agents  in 
the  king's  household,  and  was  supplied  with  copies  of  the 
most  private  papers  in  the  palace,  knew  better  than  to 
be  deceived  by  the  smooth  representations  of  the  regent. 
Philip  had,  however,  at  last  begun  secretly  to  yield. 
He  asked  Alva's  advice  ^  whether  on  the  whole  it  would 
not  be  better  to  let  the  cardinal  leave  the  Netherlands,  at 
least  for  a  time,  on  pretense  of  visiting  his  mother  in 
Burgundy,  and  to  invite  Count  Egmont  to  Madrid,  by 
way  of  striking  one  link  from  the  chain,  as  Granvelle 
had  suggested.  The  duke  had  replied  that  he  had  no 
doubt  of  the  increasing  insolence  of  the  three  seigniors, 
as  depicted  in  the  letters  of  the  Duchess  Margaret,  nor 
of  their  intention  to  make  the  cardinal  their  first  victim, 
it  being  the  regular  principle,  in  all  revolts  against  the 
sovereign,  to  attack  the  chief  minister  in  the  first  place. 
He  could  not,  however,  persuade  himself  that  the  king 
should  yield  and  Granvelle  be  recalled.  Nevertheless, 
if  it  were  to  be  done  at  all,  he  preferred  that  the  cardi- 
nal should  go  to  Burgundy  without  leave  asked  either 
of  the  duchess  or  of  Philip,  and  that  he  should  then 
write,  declining  to  return,  on  the  ground  that  his  life 
was  not  safe  in  the  Netherlands.^ 

After  much  hesitation  the  monarch  at  last  settled 
upon  a  plan,  which  recommended  itself  through  the 
extreme  duplicity  by  which  it  was  marked,  and  the 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  275,  276,  283. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  273,  291,  316. 

3  Ibid.,  vii.  289-291. 


4I9?3 


38  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

complicated  system  of  small  deceptions  which  it  con- 
sequently required.  The  king,  who  was  never  so 
thoroughly  happy  or  at  home  as  when  elaborating  the 
ingredients  of  a  composite  falsehood,  now  busily  em- 
ployed himself  in  his  cabinet.  He  measured  off  in  vari- 
ous letters  to  the  regent,  to  the  three  nobles,  to  Egmont 
alone,  and  to  Granvelle,  certain  proportionate  parts  of 
his  whole  plan,  which,  taken  separately,  were  intended 
to  deceive,  and  did  deceive,  nearly  every  person  in  the 
world,  not  only  in  his  own  generation,  but  for  three 
centuries  afterward,  but  which,  arranged  synthetically, 
as  can  now  be  done,  in  consequence  of  modern  revela- 
tions, formed  one  complete  and  considerable  lie,  the 
observation  of  which  furnishes  the  student  with  a  lesson 
in  the  political  chemistry  of  those  days,  which  was 
called  Machiavellian  statesmanship.  The  termination 
of  the  Granvelle  regency  is,  moreover,  most  important, 
not  only  for  the  grave  and  almost  interminable  results 
to  which  it  led,  but  for  the  illustration  which  it  affords 
of  the  inmost  characters  of  the  cardinal  and  ''his 
master." 

The  courier  who  was  to  take  Philip's  letters  to  the 
three  nobles  was  detained  three  weeks,  in  order  to  allow 
Armenteros,  who  was  charged  with  the  more  important 
and  secret  despatches  for  the  duchess  and  Granvelle,  to 
reach  Brussels  fii-st.  All  the  letters,  however,  were 
ready  at  the  same  time.  The  letter  of  instructions  for 
Armenteros  enjoined  upon  that  envoy  to  tell  the  regent 
that  the  heretics  were  to  be  chastised  with  renewed 
vigor,  that  she  was  to  refuse  to  convoke  the  States- 
General  under  any  pretext,  and  that  if  hard  pressed  she 
was  to  refer  directly  to  the  king.  With  regard  to 
Granvelle,  the  secretary  was  to  state  that  his  Majesty 


1564]  A  COMPLICATED  FALSEHOOD  39 

was  still  deliberating,  and  that  the  duchess  would  be 
informed  as  to  the  decision  when  it  should  be  made. 
He  was  to  express  the  royal  astonishment  that  the  sei- 
gniors should  absent  themselves  from  the  state  council, 
with  a  peremptory  intimation  that  they  should  im- 
mediately return  to  their  posts.  As  they  had  specified 
no  particularities  against  the  cardinal,  the  king  would 
still  reflect  upon  the  subject.'^ 

He  also  wrote  a  private  note  to  the  duchess,  stating 
that  he  had  not  yet  sent  the  letters  for  the  three  nobles, 
because  he  wished  that  Armenteros  should  arrive  before 
their  courier.^  He,  however,  inclosed  two  notes  for 
Egmont,^  of  which  Margaret  was  to  deliver  that  one 
which,  in  her  opinion,  was,  under  the  circumstances,  the 
best.  In  one  of  these  missives  the  king  cordially  ac- 
cepted, and  in  the  other  he  politely  declined,  Egmont's 
recent  offer  to  "\dsit  Spain.  He  also  forwarded  a  private 
letter  in  his  own  handwriting  to  the  cardinal.  Armen- 
teros, who  traveled  but  slowly  on  account  of  the  state 
of  his  health,  arrived  in  Brussels  toward  the  end  of 
February.  Five  or  six  days  afterward,  on  the  1st 
March,  namely,*  the  courier  arrived,  bringing  the  de- 
spatches for  the  seigniors.  In  his  letter  to  Orange, 
Egmont,  and  Horn,  the  king  expressed  his  astonish- 
ment at  their  resolution  to  abstain  from  the  state 
council.  Nevertheless,  said  he,  imperatively,  fail  not 
to  return  thither  and  to  show  how  much  more  highly 
you  regard  my  service  and  the  good  of  the  country  than 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  1.  285,  286. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guill™*  le  Tacit.,  ii.  67,  68. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  284,  285. 

*  "Sur  la  chute  du  Cardinal  de  Granvelle,"  par  M.  Gaehard 
(Bulletins  de  I'Academie  Royale  de  Belgique,  xvi.,  No.  6),  p.  22. 


40  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

any  other  particularity  whatever.^  As  to  Granvelle, 
continued  Philip,  since  you  will  not  make  any  specifica- 
tions, my  intention  is  to  think  over  the  matter  longer, 
in  order  to  arrange  it  as  may  seem  most  fitting.^ 

This  letter  was  dated  February  19  (1564),^  nearly  a 
month  later,  therefore,  than  the  secret  letter  to  Granvelle, 
brought  by  Armenteros,  although  all  the  despatches  had 
been  drawn  up  at  the  same  time  and  formed  parts  of 
the  same  plan.  In  this  brief  note  to  Granvelle,  how- 
ever, lay  the  heart  of  the  whole  mystery. 

"I  have  reflected  much,"  wrote  the  king,  ''on  all  that 
you  have  written  me  during  these  last  few  months  con- 
cerning the  ill  will  borne  you  by  certain  personages.  I 
notice  also  your  suspicions  that  if  a  revolt  breaks  out, 
they  will  commence  with  your  person,  thus  taking  occa- 
sion to  proceed  from  that  point  to  the  accomplishment 
of  their  ulterior  designs.  I  have  particularly  taken  into 
consideration  the  notice  received  by  you  from  the  curate 
of  St.  Gudule,  as  well  as  that  which  you  have  learned 
concerning  the  Genoese  tvJio  is  kept  at  Weerdt ;  all  which 
has  given  me  much  anxiety,  as  well  from  my  desire  for 
the  preservation  of  your  life,  in  which  my  service  is  so 
deeply  interested,  as  for  the  possible  results  if  anything 
should  happen  to  you,  which  God  forbid.  I  have 
thought,  therefore,  that  it  would  he  ivelJ,  in  order  to  give 
time  and  breathing-space  to  the  hatred  and  rancor 
which  those  persons  entertain  toward  you,  and  in  order 
to  see  what  course  they  will  take  in  preparing  the  neces- 
sary remedy  for  the  provinces,  for  you  to  leave  the  country 

1  Correspondance  de  Guill"«  le  Tacit.,  ii.  67,  68. 

2  "  Puisque  vous  ne  voulez  dire  les  particularites,  mon  intention 
est  d'y  penser  eneoires  pour  y  pourveolr  comme  11  eonviendra." — 
Ibid.  3  Ibid. 


1564]  THE  HEART  OF   THE  MYSTERY  41 

for  some  days,  in  order  to  visit  your  mother,  and  this 
with  the  knowledge  of  the  duchess,  my  sister,  and  with 
her  permission,  which  you  will  request,  and  which  I 
have  written  to  her  that  she  must  give,  without  allowing 
it  to  appear  that  you  have  received  orders  to  that  effect 
from  me.  You  will  also  beg  her  to  write  to  me  request- 
ing my  approbation  of  what  she  is  to  do.  By  taking 
this  course  neither  my  authority  nor  yours  will  suffer 
prejudice ;  and  according  to  the  turn  which  things  may 
take,  measures  may  be  taken  for  your  return  when 
expedient,  and  for  whatever  else  there  may  be  to 
arrange."  ^ 

Thus,  in  two  words,  Philip  removed  the  unpopular 
minister  forever.  The  limitation  of  his  absence  had  no 
meaning,  and  was  intended  to  have  none.  If  there  were 
not  strength  enough  to  keep  the  cardinal  in  his  place,  it 
was  not  probable  that  the  more  difficult  task  of  reinstat- 
ing him  after  his  fall  would  be  very  soon  attempted. 
It  seemed,  however,  to  be  dealing  more  tenderly  with 
Granvelle's  self-respect  thus  to  leave  a  vague  opening 
for  a  possible  return  than  to  send  him  an  unconditional 
dismissal. 

Thus,  while  the  king  refused  to  give  any  weight  to 
the  representations  of  the  nobles,  and  affected  to  be  still 
deliberating  whether  or  not  he  should  recall  the  cardinal, 
he  had  in  reality  already  recalled  him.     AU  the  minute 

1  The  text  of  this  famous  note  is  given  in  a  paper  extracted 
from  the  Bulletins  de  FAcademie  Royale  de  Bruxelles,  torn,  xii., 
pp.  9,  10,  by  M.  Gachard.  That  acute  historical  investigator,  to 
whom  the  discovery  of  this  secret  billet  is  due,  well  remarks : 
"L'Acad^mie  eomprendra  la  joie  que  me  fit  6prouver  cette  d6- 
couverte ;  ce  sont  la  des  jouissanees  qui  dMommagent  de  bien  des 
fatigues,  de  bien  des  ennuis  "  (p.  9). 


42  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

directions  according  to  which  permission  was  to  be 
asked  of  the  duchess  to  take  a  step  which  had  already- 
been  prescribed  by  the  monarch,  and  Philip's  indulgence 
craved  for  obeying  his  own  explicit  injunctions,  were 
fulfilled  to  the  letter. 

As  soon  as  the  cardinal  received  the  royal  order,  he 
privately  made  preparations  for  his  departure.  The 
regent,  on  the  other  hand,  delivered  to  Count  Egmont 
the  one  of  Philip's  two  letters  in  which  that  gentleman's 
visit  was  declined,^  the  duchess  believing  that,  in  the 
present  position  of  affairs,  she  should  derive  more 
assistance  from  him  than  from  the  rest  of  the  seigniors. 
As  GranveUe,  however,  still  delayed  his  departure,  even 
after  the  arrival  of  the  second  courier,  she  was  again 
placed  in  a  situation  of  much  perplexity.  The  three 
nobles  considered  Philip's  letter  to  them  extremely  "dry 
and  laconic,"  ^  and  Orange  absolutely  refused  to  comply 
with  the  order  to  reenter  the  state  council.  At  a  ses- 
sion of  that  body,  on  the  3d  of  March,  where  only  Gran- 
veUe, Viglius,  and  Berlaymont  were  present,  Margaret 
narrated  her  fruitless  attempts  to  persuade  the  seigniors 
into  obedience  to  the  royal  orders  lately  transmitted, 
and  asked  their  opinions.  The  extraordinary  advice 
was  then  given  that  '^she  should  let  them  champ  the 
bit  a  little  while  longer,  and  afterward  see  what  was 
to  be  done."^  Even  at  the  last  moment,  the  cardinal, 
reluctant  to  acknowledge  himself  beaten,  although 
secretly  desirous  to  retire,  was  inclined  for  a  parting 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  291-293. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guill™«  le  Tacit.,  ii.  69,  70. 

3  "  Sur  quoy  sembla  qu'elle  devroit  les  laisser  encoires  quelque 
peu  ronger  le  frain  sur  cecy  et  apres  regarder."— Correspondance 
de  PhiUppe  H.,  i.  294-297. 


1564]  GRANYELLE'S  EXIT  43 

struggle.  The  duchess,  however,  being  now  armed  with 
the  king's  express  commands,  and  having  had  enough 
of  holding  the  reins  while  such  powerful  and  restive 
personages  were  "  champing  the  bit,"  insisted  privately 
that  the  cardinal  should  make  his  immediate  departure 
known.i  Pasquinades  and  pamphlets  were  already  ap- 
pearing daily,  each  more  bitter  than  the  other ;  the  livery 
was  spreading  rapidly  through  all  classes  of  people,  and 
the  seigniors  most  distinctly  refused  to  recede  from 
their  determination  of  absenting  themselves  from  the 
council  so  long  as  Granvelle  remained.^  There  was  no 
help  for  it,  and  on  the  13th  of  March  ^  the  cardinal  took 
his  departure.  Notwithstanding  the  mystery  of  the 
whole  proceeding,  however,  William  of  Orange  was  not 
deceived.  He  felt  certain  that  the  minister  had  been 
recalled,  and  thought  it  highly  improbable  that  he 
would  ever  be  permitted  to  return.  "Although  the 
cardinal  talks  of  coming  back  again  soon,"  wrote  the 
prince  to  Schwarzburg,  "  we  nevertheless  hope  that,  as 
he  lied  about  his  departure,  so  he  will  also  spare  the 
truth  in  his  present  assertions."  *  This  was  the  general 
conviction,  so  far  as  the  question  of  the  minister's  com- 
pulsory retreat  was  concerned,  of  all  those  who  were  in 
the  habit  of  receiving  their  information  and  their  opin- 
ions from  the  Prince  of  Orange.  Many  even  thought 
that  Granvelle  had  been  recalled  with  indignity  and 
much  against  his  will.  "When  the  cardinal,"  wrote 
Secretary  Lorich  to  Count  Louis,  "received  the  king's 
order  to  go,  he  growled  like  a  bear,  and  kept  himseK 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  294-297. 

2  Ibid. 

2  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  219. 
*  Ibid.,  i.  277. 


44  THE  EISE  OF  THE  BUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

alone  in  his  chamber  for  a  time,  making  his  prepara- 
tions for  departure.  He  says  he  shall  come  back  in 
two  months,  but  some  of  us  think  they  will  be  two  long 
months  which  will  eat  themselves  up  like  money  bor- 
rowed of  the  Jews."  ^  A  wag,  moreover,  posted  a  large 
placard  upon  the  door  of  Granvelle's  palace  in  Brussels 
as  soon  as  the  minister's  departure  waS  known,  with  the 
inscription,  in  large  letters,  ''For  sale,  immediately." ^ 
In  spite  of  the  royal  ingenuity,  therefore,  many  shrewdly 
suspected  the  real  state  of  the  ease,  although  but  very 
few  actually  knew  the  truth. 

The  cardinal  left  Brussels  with  a  numerous  suite, 
stately  equipages,  and  much  parade.  The  duchess  pro- 
vided him  with  her  own  mules  and  with  a  sufficient 
escort,  for  the  king  had  expressly  enjoined  that  every 
care  should  be  taken  against  any  murderous  attack. 
There  was  no  fear  of  such  assault,  however,  for  all 
were  sufficiently  satisfied  to  see  the  minister  depart. 
Brederode  and  Count  Hoogstraaten  were  standing  to- 
gether, looking  from  the  window  of  a  house  near  the 
gate  of  Caudenberg,  to  feast  their  eyes  with  the  spectacle 
of  their  enemy's  retreat.  As  soon  as  the  cardinal  had 
passed  through  that  gate,  on  his  way  to  Namur,  the  first 
stage  of  his  journey,  they  rushed  into  the  street,  got 
both  upon  one  horse,  Hoogstraaten,  who  alone  had 
boots  on  his  legs,  taking  the  saddle  and  Brederode  the 
croup,  and  galloped  after  the  cardinal,  with  the  exulta- 
tion of  school-boys.^    Thus  mounted,  they  continued  to 

1  Groen  V.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  228,  229 :  "Hatt  er  gebrombt 
wie  ein  bar,  etc.,  .  .  .  es  werden  zwen  lange  monat  sein  und 
gleich  der  Juden  wucher  ufflaiifen  iind  sich  selber  versichern." 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

3  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  426. 


1564]  GENTEEL  COMEDY  45 

escort  the  cardinal  on  his  journey.  At  one  time  they 
were  so  near  his  carriage,  while  it  was  passing  through 
a  ravine,  that  they  might  have  spoken  to  him  from  the 
heights  above,  where  they  had  paused  to  observe  him ; 
but  they  pulled  the  capes  of  their  cloaks  over  their  faces 
and  suffered  him  to  pass  unchallenged.  '^  But  they  are 
young  folk,"  said  the  cardinal,  benignantly,  after  relat- 
ing all  these  particulars  to  the  duchess,  "  and  one  should 
pay  little  regard  to  their  actions."  He  added  that  one  of 
Egmont's  gentlemen  dogged  their  party  on  the  journey, 
lodging  in  the  same  inns  with  them,  apparently  in  the 
hope  of  learning  something  from  their  conversation  or 
proceedings.  If  that  were  the  man's  object,  however, 
Granvelle  expressed  the  conviction  that  he  was  disap- 
pointed, as  nothing  could  have  been  more  merry  than 
the  whole  company,  or  more  discreet  than  their  con- 
versation.^ 

The  cardinal  began  at  once  to  put  into  operation  the 
system  of  deception,  as  to  his  departure,  which  had 
been  planned  by  Philip.  The  man  who  had  been  ordered 
to  leave  the  Netherlands  by  the  king,  and  pushed  into 
immediate  compliance  with  the  royal  command  by  the 
duchess,  proceeded  to  address  letters  both  to  Philip  and 
Margaret.  He  wrote  from  Namur  to  beg  the  regent 
that  she  would  not  fail  to  implore  his  Majesty  graciously 
to  excuse  his  having  absented  himself  for  private  reasons 
at  that  particular  moment.^  He  wrote  to  Philip  from 
Besangon,  stating  that  his  desire  to  visit  his  mother, 
whom  he  had  not  seen  for  nineteen  years,  and  his  natal 
soil,  to  which  he  had  been  a  stranger  during  the  same 
period,  had  induced  him  to  take  advantage  of  his 
brother's  journey  to  accompany  him  for  a  few  days 
1  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  409,  410.  2  ibid. 


46  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

into  Burgundy.!  He  had,  therefore,  he  said,  obtained 
the  necessary  permission  from  the  duchess,  who  had 
kindly  promised  to  write  very  particularly  by  the  first 
courier,  to  beg  his  Majesty's  approval  of  the  liberty 
which  they  had  both  taken.^  He  wrote  from  the  same 
place  to  the  regent  again,  saying  that  some  of  the  nobles 
pretended  to  have  learned  from  Armenteros  that  the 
king  had  ordered  the  cardinal  to  leave  the  country  and 
not  to  return ;  all  which,  he  added,  was  a  very  false 
Renardesque  invention,  at  which  he  did  nothing  but 
laugh.3 

As  a  matter  of  course,  his  brother,  in  whose  company 
he  was  about  to  visit  the  mother  whom  he  had  not  seen 
for  the  past  nineteen  years,  was  as  much  mystified  as 
the  rest  of  the  world.*  Chantonnay  was  not  aw^are  that 
anything  but  the  alleged  motives  had  occasioned  the 
journey,  nor  did  he  know  that  his  brother  would  per- 
haps have  omitted  to  visit  their  common  parent  for 
nineteen  years  longer  had  he  not  received  the  royal 
order  to  leave  the  Netherlands. 

Philip,  on  the  other  side,  had  sustained  his  part  in 
the  farce  with  much  ability.  Viglius,  Berlaj^mont, 
Morillon,  and  all  the  lesser  cardinalists  were  entirely 
taken  in  by  the  letters  which  were  formally  despatched 
to  the  duchess  in  reply  to  her  own  and  the  cardinal's 
notification.  ''I  cannot  take  it  amiss,"  wrote  the  king, 
"that  you  have  given  leave  of  absence  to  Cardinal  de 
Granvelle,  for  two  or  three  months,  according  to  the 
advices  just  received  from  you,  that  he  may  attend  to 
some  private  affairs  of  his  own."^    As  soon  as  these 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  483,  484.  2  ibid. 

3  Ibid.,  vii.  591.  *  Ibid.,  ix.  565. 

6  Ibid.,  \-ii.  600-638. 


1564]  MYSTIFICATION  47 

letters  had  been  read  in  the  council,  Viglius  faithfully- 
transmitted  them  to  Granvelle  for  that  personage's  en- 
lightenment, adding  his  own  innocent  reflection  that 
"this  was  very  different  language  from  that  held  by 
some  people,  that  your  most  illustrious  lordship  had 
retired  by  order  of  his  Majesty."  ^  Morillon  also  sent 
the  cardinal  a  copy  of  the  same  passage  in  the  royal 
despatch,  saying,  very  wisely,  "I  wonder  what  they 
will  all  say  now,  since  these  letters  have  been  read  in 
council."  2  The  duchess,  as  in  duty  bound,  denied  flatly, 
on  all  occasions,  that  Armenteros  had  brought  any  let- 
ters recommending  or  ordering  the  minister's  retreat.^ 
She  conscientiously  displayed  the  letters  of  his  Majesty 
proving  the  contrary,  and  yet,  said  Viglius,  it  was  very 
hard  to  prevent  people  talking  as  they  liked.*  Gran- 
velle omitted  no  occasion  to  mystify  every  one  of  his 
correspondents  on  the  subject,  referring,  of  course,  to 
the  same  royal  letters  which  had  been  written  for  pub- 
lic reading,  expressly  to  corroborate  these  statements. 
"You  see  by  his  Majesty's  letters  to  Madame  de 
Parma,"  said  he  to  Morillon,  "how  false  is  the  report 
that  the  king  had  ordered  me  to  leave  Flanders,  and  in 
what  confusion  those  persons  find  themselves  who  fab- 
ricated the  story."  5  It  followed  of  necessity  that  he 
should  carry  out  his  part  in  the  royal  program,  but  he 
accomplished  his  task  so  adroitly,  and  with  such  redun- 
dancy of  zeal,  as  to  show  his  thorough  sympathy  with 

1  Papiers  d'fetat,  Letter  of  Viglius  to  Granvelle,  9th  May,  1564. 

2  Ibid.,  vii.  638. 

3  "  La  duchesse  renia  fort  et  f erme  que  Armenteros  avait  apport6 
aucunes  lettres  de  vostre  restraiete,  et  monstroit  bien  par  les  der- 
nieres  lettres  de  S.  Maj.  le  contraire,"  etc.— Ibid.,  vii.  653. 

*  Ibid.  5  Ibid.,  viii.  108. 


48  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

the  king's  policy.  He  dissembled  with  better  grace, 
even  if  the  king  did  it  more  naturally.  Nobody  was 
too  insignificant  to  be  deceived,  nobody  too  august. 
Emperor  Ferdinand  fared  no  better  than  "Esquire" 
Bordey.  "  Some  of  those  who  hate  me,"  he  wrote  to  the 
potentate,  "  have  circulated  the  report  that  I  had  been 
turned  out  of  the  country  and  was  never  to  return. 
This  story  has  ended  in  smoke,  since  the  letters  written 
by  his  Majesty  to  the  Duchess  of  Parma  on  the  subject 
of  the  leave  of  absence  which  she  had  given  me."i 
Philip  himself  addressed  a  private  letter  to  Granvelle, 
of  course  that  others  might  see  it,  in  which  he  affected 
to  have  just  learned  that  the  cardinal  had  obtained  per- 
mission from  the  regent  "  to  make  a  visit  to  his  mother, 
in  order  to  arrange  certain  family  matters,"  and  gravely 
gave  his  approbation  to  the  step.^  At  the  same  time  it 
was  not  possible  for  the  king  to  resist  the  temptation  of 
adding  one  other  stroke  of  dissimulation  to  his  own 
share  in  the  comedy.  GranveUe  and  Philip  had  deceived 
aU  the  world,  but  Philip  also  deceived  Granvelle.  The 
cardinal  made  a  mystery  of  his  departure  to  Polwiller, 
Viglius,  Morillon,  to  the  emperor,  to  his  own  brother, 
and  also  to  the  king's  secretary,  Gonzalo  Perez ;  but  he 
was  not  aware  that  Perez,  whom  he  thought  himself 
deceiving  as  ingeniously  as  he  had  done  all  the  others, 
had  himself  drawn  up  the  letter  of  recall,  which  the  king 
had  afterward  copied  out  in  his  own  hand  and  marked 
"  secret  and  confidential."  ^  Yet  GranveUe  might  have 
guessed  that  in  such  an  emergency  Philip  would  hardly 
depend  upon  his  own  literary  abilities. 

GranveUe  remained  month  after  month  in  seclusion, 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  113.  2  ibid.,  viii.  218,  219. 

3  M.  Gacbard,  Bull,  de  I'Acad.  Roy.,  xii.  11. 


1564]  GKANVELLE  IN  EETIREMENT  49 

doing  his  best  to  philosophize.  Already,  during  the  latter 
period  of  his  residence  in  the  Netherlands,  he  had  lived 
in  a  comparative  and  forced  solitude.  His  house  had 
been  avoided  by  those  power-worshipers  whose  faces 
are  rarely  turned  to  the  setting  sun.  He  had,  in  conse- 
quence, already,  before  his  departure,  begun  to  discourse 
on  the  beauties  of  retirement,  the  fatigues  of  greatness, 
and  the  necessity  of  repose  for  men  broken  with  the 
storms  of  state.^  A  great  man  was  like  a  lake,  he  said, 
to  which  a  thirsty  multitude  habitually  resorted  till  the 
waters  were  troubled,  sullied,  and  finally  exhausted,^ 
Power  looked  more  attractive  in  front  than  in  the  ret- 
rospect. That  which  men  possessed  was  ever  of  less 
value  than  that  which  they  hoped,^  In  this  fine  strain 
of  eloquent  commonplace  the  falling  minister  had 
ah-eady  begun  to  moralize  upon  the  vanity  of  human 
wishes.  When  he  was  established  at  his  charming 
retreat  in  Burgundy,  he  had  full  leisure  to  pursue  the 
theme.  He  remained  in  retirement  till  his  beard  grew 
to  his  waist,*  having  vowed,  according  to  report,  that 
he  would  not  shave  till  recalled  to  the  Netherlands.  If 
the  report  were  true,  said  some  of  the  gentlemen  in  the 
provinces,  it  would  be  likely  to  grow  to  his  feet.^  He 
professed  to  wish  himself  blind  and  deaf,^  that  he  might 
have  no  knowledge  of  the  world's  events,  described  him- 
self as  buried  in  literature,  and  fit  for  no  business  save 
to  remain  in  his  chamber,  fastened  to  his  books,  or 
occupied  with  private  affairs  and  religious  exercises.'^ 

^  "  Optandum  homini  laboribua  fracto  requietem,"  etc.— Strada, 
iv,  135,  2  Ibid,  3  n)id. 

*  Papiers  d'fitat,  ix,  218,  219. 

6  Ibid,  6  Ibid.,  viii.  91. 

7  Ibid.,  viii.  91,  102.     Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  i.  428. 

VOL.  II.— 4 


50  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

He  possessed  a  most  charming  residence  at  Orcliamps, 
where  he  spent  a  great  portion  of  his  time.  In  one  of 
his  letters  to  Vice-Chancellor  Seld  he  described  the 
beauties  of  this  retreat  with  much  delicacy  and  vigor. 
'^ I  am  really  not  as  badly  off  here,"  said  he,  ''as  I 
should  be  in  the  Indies.  I  am  in  sweet  places  where  I 
have  wished  for  you  a  thousand  times,  for  I  am  certain 
that  you  would  think  them  appropriate  for  philosophy 
and  worthy  the  habitation  of  the  Muses.  Here  are 
beautiful  mountains,  high  as  heaven,  fertile  on  all  their 
sides,  wreathed  with  vineyards,  and  rich  with  every 
fruit ;  here  are  rivers  flowing  through  charming  valleys, 
the  waters  clear  as  crystal,  filled  with  trout,  breaking 
into  numberless  cascades.  Here  are  umbrageous  groves, 
fertile  fields,  lovely  meadows;  on  the  one  side  great 
warmth,  on  the  other  side  delectable  coolness,  despite 
the  summer's  heat.  Nor  is  there  any  lack  of  good  com- 
pany, friends,  and  relations,  with,  as  you  weU  know,  the 
very  best  wines  in  the  world."  ^ 

Thus  it  is  obvious  that  the  cardinal  was  no  ascetic. 
His  hermitage  contained  other  appliances  save  those  for 
study  and  devotion.  His  retired  life  was,  in  fact,  that 
of  a  voluptuary.  His  brother  Chantonnay  reproached 
him  with  the  sumptuousness  and  disorder  of  his  estab- 
lishment.2  He  lived  in  "  good  and  joyous  cheer."  He 
professed  to  be  thoroughly  satisfied  with  the  course 
things  had  taken,  knowing  that  God  was  above  all  and 
would  take  care  of  all.  He  avowed  his  determination 
to  extract  pleasure  and  profit  even  from  the  ill  will  of 
his  adversaries.  ''Behold  my  philosophy,"  he  cried, 
"  to  live  joyously  as  possible,  laughing  at  the  world,  at 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  115. 

2  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  428  (note). 


1564]  PSEUDO-EPICUEUS  51 

passionate  people,  and  at  all  their  calumnies."  ^  It  is 
evident  that  his  philosophy,  if  it  had  any  real  existence, 
was  sufiBciently  Epicurean.  It  was,  however,  mainly 
compounded  of  pretense,  like  his  whole  nature  and  his 
whole  life.  Notwithstanding  the  mountains  high  as 
heaven,  the  cool  grottoes,  the  trout,  and  the  best  Bur- 
gundy wines  in  the  world,  concerning  which  he  des- 
canted so  eloquent^,  he  soon  became  in  reality  most 
impatient  of  his  compulsory  seclusion.  His  pretense 
of  *' composing  himself  as  much  as  possible  to  tran- 
quillity and  repose  "  -  could  deceive  none  of  the  intimate 
associates  to  whom  he  addressed  himself  in  that  edify- 
ing vein.  While  he  affected  to  be  blind  and  deaf  to 
politics,  he  had  eyes  and  ears  for  nothing  else.  Worldly 
affairs  were  his  element,  and  he  was  shipwrecked  upon 
the  charming  solitude  which  he  affected  to  admire.  He 
was  most  anxious  to  return  to  the  world  again,  but  he 
had  difficult  cards  to  play.  His  master  was  even  more 
dubious  than  usual  about  everything.  Granvelle  was 
ready  to  remain  in  Burgundy  as  long  as  Philip  chose 
that  he  shoixld  remain  there.  He  was  also  ready  to  go 
to  ''India,  Peru,  or  into  the  fire,"  whenever  his  king 
should  require  any  such  excursion,  or  to  return  to  the 
Netherlands,  confronting  any  danger  which  might  lie 
in  his  path.^  It  is  probable  that  he  nourished  for  a 
long  time  a  hope  that  the  storm  would  blow  over  in  the 
provinces,  and  his  resumption  of  power  become  possible. 
William  of  Orange,  although  more  than  half  convinced 
that  no  attempt  would  be  made  to  replace  the  minister, 
felt  it  necessary  to  keep  strict  watch  on  his  movements. 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  240. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  91. 

3  Ibid.,  viii.  103.     Groen  v.  Prinst.,  i.  311. 


52  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

"  We  must  be  on  our  guard,"  said  he,  "  and  not  be  de- 
ceived. Perhaps  they  mean  to  put  us  asleep,  in  order 
the  better  to  execute  their  designs.  For  the  present 
things  are  peaceable,  and  all  the  world  is  rejoiced  at  the 
departure  of  that  good  cardinal."  ^  The  prince  never 
committed  the  error  of  undervaluing  the  talents  of  his 
great  adversary,  and  he  felt  the  necessity  of  being  on 
the  alert  in  the  present  emergency.  "'T  is  a  sly  and 
cunning  bird  that  we  are  dealing  with,"  said  he,  "one 
that  sleeps  neither  day  nor  night  if  a  blow  is  to  be  dealt 
to  us."  2  Honest  Brederode,  after  solacing  himself  with 
the  spectacle  of  his  enemy's  departure,  soon  began  to 
suspect  his  return,  and  to  express  himself  on  the  subject, 
as  usual,  with  ludicrous  vehemence.  ''  They  say  the  red 
fellow  is  back  again,"  he  wrote  to  Count  Louis,  "and 
that  Berlaymont  has  gone  to  meet  him  at  Namur.  The 
devil  after  the  two  would  be  a  good  chase."  ^  Neverthe- 
less, the  chances  of  that  return  became  daily  fainter. 
Margaret  of  Parma  hated  the  cardinal  with  great  cor- 
diality. She  fell  out  of  her  servitude  to  him  into  far 
more  contemptible  hands,  but  for  a  brief  interval  she 
seemed  to  take  a  delight  in  the  recovery  of  her  freedom. 
According  to  Viglius,  the  court,  after  Granvelle's  de- 
parture, was  like  a  school  of  boys  and  girls  when  the 
pedagogue's  back  is  turned.*  He  was  very  bitter 
against  the  duchess  for  her  manifest  joy  at  emancipa- 
tion.^ The  poor  president  was  treated  with  the  most 
marked  disdain  by  Margaret,  who  also  took  pains  to 
show  her  dislike  to  all  the  cardinalists.  Secretary 
Armenteros  forbade  Bordey,  who  was  Granvelle's  cousin 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  i.  226,  227. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  259.  3  ibid.,  i.  305. 
*  Vit.  Viglii,  38.  5  ibid. 


1564]  SCHOOL  BROKE  LOOSE  53 

and  dependent,  from  even  speaking  to  Mm  in  public.^ 
The  regent  soon  became  more  intimate  with  Orange  and 
Egmont  than  she  had  ever  been  with  the  cardinal.  She 
was  made  to  see— and,  seeing,  she  became  indignant— 
the  cipher  which  she  had  really  been  during  his  admin- 
istration. '^  One  can  tell  what 's  o'clock,"  ^  wrote  Morillon 
to  the  fallen  minister,  ''since  she  never  writes  to  you 
nor  mentions  your  name."  As  to  Armenteros,  with 
whom  Granvelle  was  still  on  friendly  relations,  he  was 
restless  in  his  endeavors  to  keep  the  once  powerful 
priest  from  rising  again.  Having  already  wormed  him- 
self into  the  confidence  of  the  regent,  he  made  a  point 
of  showing  to  the  principal  seigniors  various  letters  in 
which  she  had  been  warned  by  the  cardinal  to  put  no 
trust  in  them.  "  That  devil,"  said  Armenteros,  "  thought 
he  had  got  into  Paradise  here ;  but  he  is  gone,  and  we 
shall  take  care  that  he  never  returns."^  It  was  soon 
thought  highly  probable  that  the  king  was  but  temporiz- 
ing, and  that  the  voluntary  departure  of  the  minister 
had  been  a  deception.  Of  coui'se  nothing  was  accurately 
known  upon  the  subject;  Philip  had  taken  good  care 
of  that;  but  meantime  the  bets  were  very  high  that 
there  would  be  no  restoration,  with  but  few  takers. 
Men  thought  if  there  had  been  any  royal  favor  remain- 
ing for  the  great  man,  that  the  duchess  would  not  be  so 
decided  in  her  demeanor  on  the  subject.  They  saw  that 
she  was  scarlet  with  indignation  whenever  the  cardinal's 
name  was  mentioned.*     They  heard  her  thank  Heaven 

Papiers  d'f]tat,  vii.  593. 

2  "L'on  peult  faeillement  voir  quelle  heure  il  est,"  etc.— Ibid., 
viii.  92-94.  3  n^jd, 

*  Ibid.,  viii.  132:  "Que  son  Alteze  devient  rouge  comme  escar- 
late  quand  l'on  parle  de  V^  Sg'%"  etc. 


54  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

that  she  had  but  one  son,  because  if  she  had  had  a 
second  he  must  have  been  an  ecclesiastic,  and  as  vile  as 
priests  always  were.^  They  witnessed  the  daily  con- 
tumely which  she  heaped  upon  poor  Viglius,  both 
because  he  was  a  friend  of  Granvelle  and  was  prepar- 
ing in  his  old  age  to  take  orders.  The  days  were  gone, 
indeed,  when  Margaret  was  so  fiUed  with  respectful 
affection  for  the  prelate  that  she  could  secretly  cor- 
respond with  the  Holy  Father  at  Rome  and  solicit  the 
red  hat  for  the  object  of  her  veneration.  She  now 
wrote  to  Philip,  stating  that  she  was  better  informed  as 
to  affairs  in  the  Netherlands  than  she  had  ever  formerly 
been.  She  told  her  brother  that  all  the  views  of  Gran- 
velle and  of  his  followers,  Viglius  with  the  rest,  had 
tended  to  produce  a  revolution  which  they  hoped  that 
Philip  would  find  in  full  operation  when  he  should  come 
to  the  Netherlands.  It  was  their  object,  she  said,  to 
fish  in  troubled  waters,  and,  to  attain  that  aim,  they  had 
ever  pursued  the  plan  of  gaining  the  exclusive  control 
of  all  affairs.  That  was  the  reason  why  they  had  ever 
opposed  the  convocation  of  the  States-General.  They 
feared  that  their  hooJis  tvoiild  he  read,  and  their  frauds, 
injustice,  simony,  and  rapine  discovered.^  This  would 
be  the  result  if  tranquillity  were  restored  to  the  country, 
and  therefore  they  had  done  their  best  to  foment  and 
maintain  discord.  The  duchess  soon  afterward  enter- 
tained her  royal  brother  with  very  detailed  accounts  of 
various  acts  of  simony,  peculation,  and  embezzlement 
committed  by  Viglius,  which  the  cardinal  had  aided  and 
abetted,  and  by  which  he  had  profited.^     These  revela- 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  132. 

2  Coirespondance  de  Phil.  II.,  i.  311-314. 

3  Ibid.,  i.  318-320. 


1564]  CONTLICTING  STATEMENTS  55 

tions  are  inestimable  in  a  historical  point  of  view.  They 
do  not  raise  our  estimate  of  Margaret's  character,  but 
they  certainly  give  us  a  clear  insight  into  the  nature  of 
the  Grauvelle  administration.  At  the  same  time  it  was 
characteristic  of  the  duchess  that,  while  she  was  thus 
painting  the  portrait  of  the  cardinal  for  the  private  eye 
of  his  sovereign,  she  should  address  the  banished  min- 
ister himself  in  a  secret  strain  of  condolence,  and  even 
of  penitence.  She  wrote  to  assiu*e  Granvelle  that  she 
repented  extremely  having  adopted  the  views  of  Orange. 
She  promised  that  she  would  state  publicly  everywhere 
that  the  cardinal  was  an  upright  man,  intact  in  his 
morals  and  his  administration,  a  most  zealous  and  faith- 
ful servant  of  the  king.^  She  added  that  she  recognized 
the  obligations  she  was  under  to  him,  and  that  she  loved 
him  like  a  brother.''^  She  affirmed  that  if  the  Flemish 
seigniors  had  induced  her  to  cause  the  cardinal  to  be 
deprived  of  the  government,  she  was  already  penitent, 
and  that  her  fault  deserved  that  the  king,  her  brother, 
should  cut  off  her  head  for  having  occasioned  so  great 
a  calamity.^ 

There  was  certainly  discrepancy  between  the  language 
thus  used  simultaneously  by  the  duchess  to  Granvelle 
and  to  Philip,  but  Margaret  had  been  trained  in  the 
school  of  Machiavelli  and  had  sat  at  the  feet  of  Loyola. 

The  cardinal  replied  with  equal  suavity,  protesting 
that  such  a  letter  from  the  duchess  left  him  nothing 
more  to  desire,  as  it  furnished  him  with  an  ''  entire  and 
perfect  justification  "  of  his  conduct.*    He  was  aware  of 

1  Dom  FEvesque,  ii.  71.  2  j^jtj. 

3  Ibid.,  ubi  sup.  He  cites  the  MS.  collection  entitled  "M6- 
moires  de  Granvelle,"  torn.  33,  p.  67. 

*  Ibid.,  ii.  71,  72.     M6moires  de  Granvelle,  torn.  33,  p.  95. 


56  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

her  real  sentiments,  no  doubt,  but  he  was  too  politic  to 
quarrel  with  so  important  a  personage  as  Philip's  sister. 
An  incident  which  occurred  a  few  months  after  the 
minister's  departure  served  to  show  the  general  estima- 
tion in  which  he  was  held  by  all  ranks  of  Netherlanders. 
Count  Mansf eld  celebrated  the  baptism  of  his  son,  Philip 
Octavian,  by  a  splendid  series  of  festivities  at  Luxem- 
burg, the  capital  of  his  government.  Besides  the  tour- 
naments and  similar  sports,  with  which  the  upper  classes 
of  European  society  were  accustomed  at  that  day  to 
divert  themselves,  there  was  a  grand  masquerade,  to 
which  the  public  were  admitted  as  spectators.  In  this 
"mummery"  the  most  successful  spectacle  was  that 
presented  by  a  group  arranged  in  obvious  ridicule  of 
Granvelle.  A  figure  dressed  in  cardinal's,  costume,  with 
the  red  hat  upon  his  head,  came  pacing  through  the 
arena  upon  horseback.  Before  him  marched  a  man 
attired  like  a  hermit,  with  long  white  beard,  telling  his 
beads  upon  a  rosary  which  he  held  ostentatiously  in 
his  hands.  Behind  the  mounted  cardinal  came  the 
devil,  attired  in  the  usual  guise  considered  appropriate 
to  the  prince  of  darkness,  who  scourged  both  horse 
and  rider  with  a  whip  of  foxtails,  causing  them  to 
scamper  about  the  lists  in  great  trepidation,  to  the  im- 
mense dehght  of  the  spectators.  The  practical  pun 
upon  Simon  Renard's  name  embodied  in  the  foxtail, 
with  the  allusion  to  the  effect  of  the  manifold  squibs 
perpetrated  by  that  most  bitter  and  lively  enemy  upon 
Granvelle,  was  understood  and  relished  by  the  multi- 
tude. Nothing  could  be  more  hearty  than  the  blows 
bestowed  upon  the  minister's  representative,  except  the 
applause  with  which  this  satire,  composed  of  actual 
fustigation,  was  received.     The  humorous  spectacle  ab- 


1564]  THE   CARDINALISTS  ROUTED  57 

sorbed  all  the  interest  of  the  masquerade,  and  was  fre- 
quently repeated.  It  seemed  difficult  to  satisfy  the 
general  desire  to  witness  a  thorough  chastisement  of 
the  culprit.  1 

The  incident  made  a  great  noise  in  the  country.  The 
cardinaHsts  felt  naturally  very  much  enraged,  but  they 
were  in  a  minority.  No  censure  came  from  the  govern- 
ment at  Brussels,  and  Mansf eld  was  then  and  for  a  long 
time  afterward  the  main  pillar  of  royal  authority  in 
the  Netherlands.  It  was  sufficiently  obvious  that  Gran- 
velle,  for  the  time  at  least,  was  supported  by  no  party 
of  any  influence. 

Meantime  he  remained  in  his  seclusion.  His  unpopu- 
larity did  not,  however,  decrease  in  his  absence.  More 
than  a  year  after  his  departure,  Berlaymont  said  the 
nobles  detested  the  cardinal  more  than  ever,  and  would 
eat  him  alive  if  they  caught  him.^  The  chance  of  his 
returning  was  dying  gi'adually  out.  At  about  the  same 
period  Chantonnay  advised  his  brother  to  show  his 
teeth.3  He  assured  Granvelle  that  he  was  too  quiet  in 
his  disgrace,  reminded  him  that  princes  had  warm 
affections  when  they  wished  to  make  use  of  people,  but 
that  when  they  could  have  them  too  cheaply  they 
esteemed  them  but  little,  making  no  account  of  men 
whom  they  were  accustomed  to  see  under  their  feet. 
He  urged  the  cardinal,  in  repeated  letters,  to  take  heart 
again,  to  make  himself  formidable,  and  to  rise  from  his 
crouching  attitude.  All  the  world  say,  he  remarked, 
that  the  game  is  up  between  the  king  and  yourself,  and 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  76,  77,  92-94. 

2  Ibid.,  ix.  235. 

"...  monstrer  le  visage  et  les  dents,"  etc.— Ibid.,  ix.  186, 

187. 


58  THE  EiSE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

before  long  every  one  will  be  laughing  at  you  and  hold- 
ing you  for  a  dupe.^ 

Stung  or  emboldened  by  these  remonstrances,  and 
"weary  of  his  retirement,  Granvelle  at  last  abandoned 
all  intention  of  returning  to  the  Netherlands,  and 
toward  the  end  of  1565  departed  to  Rome,  where  he 
participated  in  the  election  of  Pope  Pius  V.  Five  years 
afterward  he  was  employed  by  Philip  to  negotiate  the 
treaty  between  Spain,  Rome,  and  Venice  against  the 
Turk.  He  was  afterward  viceroy  of  Naples,  and  in 
1575  he  removed  to  Madrid  to  take  an  active  part  in 
the  management  of  the  public  business,  "the  disorder 
of  which,"  says  the  Abb6  Boisot,  ''could  be  no  longer 
arrested  by  men  of  mediocre  capacity."  ^  He  died  in 
that  city  on  the  21st  September,  1586,  at  the  age  of 
seventy,  and  was  buried  at  Besan^on.^ 

We  have  dwelt  at  length  on  the  administration  of  this 
remarkable  personage,  because  the  period  was  one  of 
vital  importance  in  the  history  of  the  Netherland  com- 
monwealth. The  minister  who  deals  with  the  countiy 
at  an  epoch  when  civil  war  is  imminent  has  at  least  as 
heavy  a  responsibility  upon  his  head  as  the  man  who 
goes  forth  to  confront  the  armed  and  full-grown  re- 
bellion. All  the  causes  out  of  which  the  great  revolt 
was  born  were  in  violent  operation  during  the  epoch  of 
Granvelle's  power.  By  the  manner  in  which  he  com- 
ported himself  in  presence  of  those  dangerous  and 
active  elements  of  the  coming  convulsions  must  his 
character  as  a  historical  personage  be  measured.  His 
individuality  had  so  much  to  do  with  the  course  of  the 

1  Papiers  d'fjtat,  ix.  184-187. 

2  Ibid.     Notice  pr^liminaire  de  M.  Ch.  Weisz. 
s  Ibid. 


1564]  A   FINAL  DISSECTION  59 

government,  the  powers  placed  in  his  hands  were  so 
vast,  and  his  energy  so  nntiring,  that  it  is  difficult  to 
exaggerate  the  importance  of  his  influence  upon  the 
destiny  of  the  country  which  he  was  permitted  to  rule. 
It  is  for  this  reason  that  we  have  been  at  great  pains  to 
present  his  picture,  sketched  as  it  were  by  his  own  hand. 
A  few  general  remarks  are,  however,  necessary.  It  is 
the  historian's  duty  to  fix  upon  one  plain  and  definite 
canvas  the  chameleon  colors  in  which  the  subtle  cardinal 
produced  his  own  image.  Almost  any  theory  concern- 
ing his  character  might  be  laid  down  and  sustained  by 
copious  citations  from  his  works ;  nay,  the  most  opposite 
conclusions  as  to  his  interior  nature  may  be  often  drawn 
from  a  single  one  of  his  private  and  interminable  letters. 
Embarked  under  his  guidance,  it  is  often  difficult  to 
comprehend  the  point  to  which  we  are  tending.  The 
oarsman's  face  beams  upon  us  with  serenity,  but  he 
looks  in  one  direction  and  rows  in  the  opposite  course. 
Even  thus  it  was  three  centuries  ago.  "Was  it  to  be 
wondered  at  that  many  did  not  see  the  precipice  toward 
which  the  bark  which  held  their  aU  was  gliding  under 
the  same  impulse  ? 

No  man  has  ever  disputed  GranveUe's  talents.  From 
friend  and  foe  his  intellect  has  received  the  full  measure 
of  applause  which  it  could  ever  claim.  No  doubt  his 
genius  was  of  a  rare  and  subtle  kind.  His  great  power 
was  essentially  dramatic  in  its  nature.  He  mastered 
the  characters  of  the  men  with  whom  he  had  to  deal, 
and  then  assumed  them.  He  practised  this  art  mainly 
upon  personages  of  exalted  station,  for  his  scheme  was 
to  govern  the  world  by  acquiring  dominion  over  its 
anointed  rulers.  A  smooth  and  supple  slave  in  appear- 
ance, but  in  reality,  while  his  power  lasted,  the  despot 


60  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  BEPUBLIC         [1564 

of  his  masters,  lie  exercised  boundless  control  by  enact- 
ing their  parts  with  such  fidelity  that  they  were  them- 
selves deceived.  It  is  impossible  not  to  admire  the 
facility  with  which  this  accomplished  Proteus  succes- 
sively assumed  the  characters  of  Philip  and  of  Margaret, 
•  through  all  the  complicated  affairs  and  voluminous 
correspondence  of  his  government. 

When  envoys  of  high  rank  were  to  be  despatched  on 
confidential  missions  to  Spain,  the  cardinal  drew  their 
instructions  as  the  duchess,  threw  light  upon  their  sup- 
posed motives  in  secret  letters  as  the  king's  sister,  and 
answered  their  representations  with  ponderous  wisdom 
as  Philip,  transmitting  despatches,  letters,  and  briefs 
for  royal  conversations  in  time  to  be  thoroughly  studied 
before  the  advent  of  the  ambassador.  Whoever  traveled 
from  Brussels  to  Madrid  in  order  to  escape  the  influence 
of  the  ubiquitous  cardinal  was  sure  to  be  confronted 
with  him  in  the  inmost  recesses  of  the  king's  cabinet  as 
soon  as  he  was  admitted  to  an  audience.  To  converse 
with  Philip  or  Margaret  was  but  to  commune  with 
Anthony.  The  skill  with  which  he  played  his  game, 
seated  quietly  in  his  luxurious  villa,  now  stretching 
forth  one  long  arm  to  move  the  king  at  Madrid,  now 
placing  Margaret  upon  what  square  he  liked,  and  deal- 
ing with  bishops.  Knights  of  the  Fleece,  and  lesser 
dignitaries,  the  Richardots,  the  Morillons,  the  Viglii, 
and  the  Berlaymonts,  with  sole  reference  to  his  own 
scheme  of  action,  was  truly  of  a  nature  to  excite  our 
special  wonder.  His  aptitude  for  affairs  and  his  power 
to  read  character  were  extraordinary ;  but  it  was  neces- 
sary that  the  affaii-s  should  be  those  of  a  despotism,  and 
the  characters  of  an  inferior  nature.  He  could  read 
Philip  and  Margaret,  Egmont  or  Berlaymont,  Alva'  or 


1564]    GRANVELLE'S  LITERARY  ACCOMPLISHMENTS    61 

Viglius/but  he  had  no  plummet  to  sound  the  depths  of 
a  mind  like  that  of  William  the  Silent.  His  genius  was 
adroit  and  subtle,  but  not  profound.  He  aimed  at 
power  by  making  the  powerful  subservient,  but  he  had 
not  the  intellect  which  deals  in  the  daylight  face  to  face 
with  great  events  and  great  minds.  In  the  violent  polit- 
ical struggle  of  which  his  administration  consisted,  he 
was  foiled  and  thrown  by  the  superior  strength  of  a 
man  whose  warfare  was  open  and  manly,  and  who  had 
no  defense  against  the  poisoned  weapons  of  his  foe. 

His  literary  accomplishments  were  very  great.  His 
fecundity  was  prodigious,  and  he  wrote  at  will  in  seven 
languages.  This  polyglot  facility  was  not  in  itself  a 
very  remarkable  circumstance,  for  it  grew  out  of  his 
necessary  education  and  geographical  position.  Few 
men  in  that  age  and  region  were  limited  to  their  mother- 
tongue.  The  Prince  of  Orange,  who  made  no  special 
pretense  to  learning,  possessed  at  least  five  languages. 
Egmont,  who  was  accounted  an  ignorant  man,  was  cer- 
tainly familiar  with  three.  The  cardinal,  however, 
wrote  not  only  with  ease,  but  with  remarkable  elegance, 
vigor,  and  vivacity,  in  whatever  language  he  chose  to 
adopt.  The  style  of  his  letters  and  other  documents, 
regarded  simply  as  compositions,  was  inferior  to  that 
of  no  writer  of  the  age.  His  occasional  orations,  too, 
were  esteemed  models  of  smooth  and  flowing  rhetoric, 
at  an  epoch  when  the  art  of  eloquence  was  not  much 
cultivated.  Yet  it  must  be  allowed  that  beneath  all  the 
shallow  but  harmonious  flow  of  his  periods  it  would  be 
idle  to  search  for  a  grain  of  golden  sand.  Not  a  single 
sterling,  manly  thought  is  to  be  found  in  all  his  pro- 
ductions. If  at  times  our  admiration  is  excited  with 
the  appearance  of  a  gem  of  true  philosophy,  we  are 


62  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

soon  obliged  to  acknowledge,  on  closer  inspection,  that 
we  have  been  deceived  by  a  false  glitter.  In  retirement 
his  solitude  was  not  relieved  by  serious  application  to 
any  branch  of  knowledge.  Devotion  to  science  and  to 
the  advancement  of  learning,  a  virtue  which  has  changed 
the  infamy  of  even  baser  natures  than  his  into  glory, 
never  dignified  his  seclusion.  He  had  elegant  tastes, 
he  built  fine  palaces,  he  collected  paintings,  and  he  dis- 
coursed of  the  fine  arts  with  the  skill  and  eloquence  of 
a  practised  connoisseur;  but  the  nectared  fruits  of 
divine  philosophy  were  but  harsh  and  crabbed  to  him. 

His  moral  characteristics  are  even  more  difficult  to 
seize  than  his  intellectual  traits.  It  is  a  perplexing  task 
to  arrive  at  the  intimate  interior  structure  of  a  nature 
which  hardly  had  an  interior.  He  did  not  change,  but 
he  presented  himself  daily  in  different  aspects.  Certain 
peculiarities  he  possessed,  however,  which  were  unques- 
tionable. He  was  always  courageous,  generally  calm. 
Placed  in  the  midst  of  a  nation  which  hated  him,  ex- 
posed to  the  furious  opposition  of  the  most  powerful 
adversaries,  having  hardly  a  friend  except  the  cowardly 
Viglius  and  the  pluralist  Morillon,  secretly  betrayed  by 
Margaret  of  Parma,  insulted  by  rude  grandees,  and 
threatened  by  midnight  assassins,  he  never  lost  his  self- 
possession,  his  smooth  arrogance,  his  fortitude.  He 
was  constitutionally  brave.  He  was  not  passionate  in 
his  resentments.  To  say  that  he  was  forgiving  by 
nature  would  be  an  immense  error;  but  that  he  could 
put  aside  vengeance  at  the  dictate  of  policy  is  very  cer- 
tain. He  could  temporize,  even  after  the  reception  of 
what  he  esteemed  grave  injuries,  if  the  offenders  were 
powerful.  He  never  manifested  rancor  against  the 
duchess.     Even  after  his  fall  from  power  in  the  Nether- 


1564]  OUTER  AND  INNER  STRUCTURE  63 

lands  he  interceded  with  the  pope  in  favor  of  the 
principality  of  Orange,  which  the  pontiff  was  disposed 
to  confiscate.  The  prince  was  at  that  time  as  good  a 
Catholic  as  the  cardinal.  He  was  apparently  on  good 
terms  with  his  sovereign,  and  seemed  to  have  a  pros- 
perous career  before  him.  He  was  not  a  personage  to 
be  quarreled  with.  At  a  later  day,  when  the  position 
of  that  great  man  was  most  clearly  defined  to  the  world, 
the  cardinal's  ancient  affection  for  his  former  friend 
and  pupil  did  not  prevent  him  from  suggesting  the 
famous  ban  by  which  a  price  was  set  upon  his  head, 
and  his  life  placed  in  the  hands  of  every  assassin  in 
Europe.  It  did  not  prevent  him  from  indulging  in  the 
jocularity  of  a  fiend  when  the  news  of  the  first-fruits 
of  that  bounty  upon  murder  reached  his  ears.^  It  did 
not  prevent  him  from  laughing  merrily  at  the  pain 
which  his  old  friend  must  have  suffered,  shot  through 
the  head  and  face  with  a  musket-ball,  and  at  the  muti- 
lated aspect  which  his  "handsome  face  must  have  pre- 
sented to  the  eyes  of  his  apostate  wife."^  It  did  not 
prevent  him  from  stoutly  disbelieving  and  then  refus- 
ing to  be  comforted  when  the  recovery  of  the  illustrious 
victim  was   announced.    He   could  always  dissemble 

^  "Les  nouvelles,"  wrote  Granvelle  to  Fonck,  "qui  arrivent  de 
la  mort  du  P"=^  d' Orange  ne  sent  pas  mauvaises — Dieu  soit  loue  de 
tout."  "L'on  ha  envoye  le  Prince  d'Orange,"  he  wrote  to  Belle- 
fontaine,  "en  Fautre  monde,  que  y  fut  est6  mieulx  il  y  a  xx  ans." 
Again,  a  few  days  later,  "  C'est  dommaige  que  le  Pr.  d'Or.  ne  soit 
mort  dois  long  terns.  .  .  .  Maintenant  viennent  nouvelles  que 
le  P.  d'Or.  est  trespasse.  II  ha  vescu  plus  de  xx  ans  plus  qu'il  ne 
convenoit."— Archives  et  Correspondance,  viii.  76,  77. 

2  "Le  Prince  d'Orange  ha  endure  unc  poyne  extreme,  et  vous 
pensez  qiiel  etoit  son  beau  visaige  pour  donner  contentement  a  sa 
nonnain  apostate."— Ibid. 


64  THE  EISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1564 

without  entirely  forgetting  his  grievances.  Certainly, 
if  he  were  the  forgiving  Christian  he  pictured  himself, 
it  is  passing  strange  to  reflect  upon  the  ultimate  fate  of 
Egmont,  Horn,  Montigny,  Berghen,  Orange,  and  a 
host  of  others  whose  relations  with  him  were  inimical. 

His  extravagance  was  enormous,  and  his  life  luxurious. 
At  the  same  time  he  could  leave  his  brother  Champagny 
— a  man,  with  all  his  faults,  of  a  noble  nature,  and  with 
scarcely  inferior  talents  to  his  own— to  languish  for  a 
long  time  in  abject  poverty,  supported  by  the  charity  of 
an  ancient  domestic.^  His  greediness  for  wealth  was 
proverbial.  No  benefice  was  too  large  or  too  paltry  to 
escape  absorption  if  placed  within  his  possible  reach. 
Loaded  with  places  and  preferments,  rolling  in  wealth, 
he  approached  his  sovereign  with  the  whine  of  a  men- 
dicant. He  talked  of  his  property  as  a  "misery"  w'len 
he  asked  for  boons,  and  expressed  his  thanks  in  che 
language  of  a  slave  when  he  received  them.  Having 
obtained  the  abbey  of  St.  Armand,  he  could  hardly  wait 
for  the  burial  of  the  Bishop  of  Tournay  before  claiming 
the  vast  revenues  of  Afflighem,  assuring  the  king  as  he 
did  so  that  his  annual  income  was  but  eighteen  thousand 
crowns.^  At  the  same  time,  while  thus  receiving  or 
pursuing  the  vast  rents  of  St.  Armand  and  Afflighem, 

^  "  J'avois  presque  oubli6  de  vous  mander  I'extreme  pauvret^  ou 
se  retrouve  a  present  le  Sr  de  Champagney  comme  appert  par  les 
lettres  qu'il  escrit  bien  souvent  au  maistre  des  comptes  Appeltain 
qui  fut  aultre  fois  son  secretaire,  et  de  qui  seul  il  est  a  present  ali- 
ments et  sustentS."— Extract  of  a  letter  of  15tli  December,  1576, 
in  a  large  MS.  collection  of  letters  and  documents  in  the  Brussels 
Archives,  entitled  "  E6eonciliation  des  Provinces  Wallones."  Ar- 
chives du  Eoyaume.     Papiers  d'etat,  ii.  f.  160. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  336.  Compare  Gr.  v.  Prinst., 
Archives  et  Correspondance,  i.  842. 


1564]  CONFUSION  OF  COLORS  65 

he  could  seize  the  abbey  of  Trulle  from  the  expectant 
hands  of  poor  dependents,  and  accept  tapestries  and 
hogsheads  of  wine  from  Jacques  Lequien  and  others 
as  a  tax  on  the  benefices  which  he  procured  for  them. 
Yet  the  man  who,  like  his  father  before  him,  had  so 
long  fattened  on  the  public  money,  who  at  an  early 
day  had  incurred  the  emperor's  sharp  reproof  for  his 
covetousness,  whose  family,  besides  all  these  salaries  and 
personal  property,  possessed  already  fragments  of  the 
royal  domain  in  the  shape  of  nineteen  baronies  and 
seigniories  in  Burgundy,  besides  the  county  of  Cante- 
croix  and  other  estates  in  the  Netherlands,  had  the 
effrontery  to  afiirm,  ''We  have  always  rather  regarded 
the  service  of  the  master  than  our  own  particular 
profit."  1 

In  estimating  the  conduct  of  the  minister  in  relation 
to  the  provinces,  we  are  met  upon  the  threshold  by  a 
swarm  of  vague  assertions  which  are  of  a  nature  to 
blind  or  distract  the  judgment.  His  character  must  be 
judged  as  a  whole  and  by  its  general  results,  with  a 
careful  allowance  for  contradictions  and  equivocations. 
Truth  is  clear  and  single,  but  the  lights  are  party-colored 
and  refracted  in  the  prism  of  hypocrisy.  The  great 
feature  of  his  administration  was  a  prolonged  conflict 
between  himself  and  the  leading  seigniors  of  the  Nether- 
lands. The  ground  of  the  combat  was  the  religious 
question.  Let  the  quarrel  be  turned  or  tortured  in  any 
manner  that  human  ingenuity  can  devise,  it  still  remains 
unquestionable  that  Granvelle's  main  object  was  to 
strengthen  and  to  extend  the  Inquisition,  that  of  his 
adversaries  to  overthrow  the  institution.     It  followed, 

1  "  Car  nous  avons  tousjours  plus  regard^  au  prouffit  et  service 
du  maistre  que  a  nostre  particulier."— Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  448. 
VOL.  II.— 6 


66  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

necessarily,  that  the  ancient  charters  were  to  be  trampled 
in  the  dust  before  that  tribunal  could  be  triumphant. 
The  nobles,  although  all  Catholics,  defended  the  cause 
of  the  poor  religious  martyrs,  the  privileges  of  the  nation, 
and  the  rights  of  their  order.  They  were  conservatives, 
battling  for  the  existence  of  certain  great  facts,  entirely 
consonant  to  any  theory  of  justice  and  divine  reason — 
for  ancient  constitutions  which  had  been  purchased  with 
blood  and  treasure.  ''  I  will  maintain,"  was  the  motto 
of  William  of  Orange.  Philip,  bigoted  and  absolute 
almost  beyond  comprehension,  might  perhaps  have 
proved  impervious  to  any  representations,  even  of 
Granvelle.  Nevertheless,  the  minister  might  have  at- 
tempted the  task,  and  the  responsibility  is  heavy  upon 
the  man  who  shared  the  power  and  directed  the  career, 
but  who  never  ceased  to  represent  the  generous  resis- 
tance of  individuals  to  frantic  cruelty  as  offenses  against 
God  and  the  king. 

Yet  extracts  are  drawn  from  his  letters  to  prove  that 
he  considered  the  Spaniards  as  ^' proud  and  usurping," 
that  he  indignantly  denied  ever  having  been  in  favor 
of  subjecting  the  Netherlands  to  the  soldiers  of  that 
nation,  that  he  recommended  the  withdrawal  of  the 
foreign  regiments,  and  that  he  advised  the  king,  when 
he  came  to  the  country,  to  bring  with  him  but  few 
Spanish  troops.  It  should,  however,  be  remembered 
that  he  employed,  according  to  his  own  statements, 
every  expedient  which  human  ingenuity  could  suggest 
to  keep  the  foreign  soldiers  in  the  provinces,  that  he 
"lamented  to  his  inmost  soul"  their  forced  departure, 
and  that  he  did  not  consent  to  that  measure  until  the 
people  were  in  a  tumult  and  the  Zealanders  threatening 
to  lay  the  country  under  the  ocean.     "  You  may  judge 


MARGARET,   DUCHESS  OF  PARMA 

After  the  painting  by  A.  Moro  of  Dashorst, 
Imperial  Picture  Gallery,  Vienna. 


1564]  GRANVELLE  AGAINST  GRANVELLE  67 

of  the  means  employed  to  excite  the  people,"  he  wrote 
to  Perez  iu  1563,  "  by  the  fact  that  a  report  is  circulated 
that  the  Duke  of  Alva  is  coming  hither  to  tyrannize  the 
provinces."  ^  Yet  it  appears  by  the  admissions  of  Del 
Ryo,  one  of  Alva's  Blood-Council,  that  ^'  Cardinal  Grran- 
velle  expressly  advised  that  an  army  of  Spaniards  should 
be  sent  to  the  Netherlands,  to  maintain  the  obedience  to 
his  Majesty  and  the  Catholic  religion,  and  that  the  Duke 
of  Alva  was  appointed  chief  by  the  advice  of  Cardinal 
Spinosa,  and  by  that  of  Cardinal  Granvelle,  as  appeared 
by  many  letters  written  at  the  time  to  his  friends.  "^ 
By  the  same  confessions  it  appeared  that  the  course  of 
policy  thus  distinctly  recommended  by  Granvelle  "  was 
to  place  the  country  under  a  system  of  government  like 
that  of  Spain  and  Italy,  and  to  reduce  it  entirely  under 
the  council  of  Spain."  ^  When  the  teri'ible  duke  started 
on  his  errand  of  blood  and  fire,  the  cardinal  addressed 
him  a  letter  of  fulsome  flattery,  protesting  "  that  all  the 
world  knew  that  no  person  could  be  found  so  appropriate 
as  he  to  be  employed  in  an  affair  of  such  importance  "  j 
urging  him  to  advance  with  his  army  as  rapidly  as  pos- 
sible upon  the  Netherlands ;  hoping  that  '^  the  Duchess 
of  Parma  would  not  be  allowed  to  consent  that  any 
pardon  or  concession  should  be  made  to  the  cities,  by 
which  the  construction  of  fortresses  would  be  interfered 
with,  or  the  revocation  of  the  charters  which  had  been 
forfeited  be  prevented  " ;  and  giving  him  much  advice  as 
to  the  general  measures  to  be  adopted,  and  the  persons 
to  be  employed  upon  his  arrival,  in  which  number  the 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  1.  250. 

2  The  confessions  of  Del  Ryo  have  been  printed  in  the  Messager 
des  Arts  et  Sciences  (Gand,  1838),  p.  466  sqq. 

-  Ibid. 


68  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

infamous  Noircarmes  was  especially  recommended.^  In 
a  document  found  among  his  papers,  these  same  points, 
with  others,  were  handled  at  considerable  length.  The 
incorporation  of  the  provinces  into  one  kingdom,  of 
which  the  king  was  to  be  crowned  absolute  sovereign ; 
the  establishment  of  a  universal  law  for  the  Catholic 
religion,  care  being  taken  not  to  call  that  law  inquisi- 
tion, ''because  there  was  nothing  so  odious  to  the 
northern  nations  as  the  word  Spanish  Inquisition,  al- 
though the  thing  in  itself  he  most  holy  and  just ";  ^  i}^q 
abolition  and  annihilation  of  the  broad  or  general 
council  in  the  cities,  the  only  popular  representation 
in  the  country;  the  construction  of  many  citadels  and 

1  This  remarkable  letter  has  never  been  published.  It  is  not  in 
the  Besan^on  Collection,  but  is  among  a  quantity  of  letters  written 
by  Granvelle  when  at  Rome,  and  which  are  now  in  the  Bibliotheque 
de  Bourgogne  at  Brussels.  Its  date  is  May  16,  1567.  "Todavia," 
says  the  cardinal  to  the  duke,  "  por  ser  todo  en  tanto  servicio  de 
Dios  y  de  su  M"*  y  en  tanta  reputacion  de  V*  Ex*  viendo  todo  el 
mundo  que  no  se  podia  emplear  persona  que  en  cosa  de  tanta  im- 
portanciafuesse  fawtodj>roposJ?o.  .  .  .  No  querria  que  Madama  se 
dexasse  persuadir  a  que  (non  obstante  de  lo  que  su  Mag^  lo  ha 
scripto)  consintiesse  algo  a  las  dichas  villas  perdonando  o  de  otra 
manera  que  estorvaze  a  su  Mag"^  el  camino  y  tiene  para  liazer 
fortalezas  donde  sera  menester  y  de  poder  moderar  los  privilegios 
a  las  qui  han  perdido  spetialmente  ...  a  que  la  corte  no  pudiesse 
proveer  a  poner  en  ellas  el  govierno  y  orden  que  convenia  por  su 
proprio  beneficio.  .  .  .  Aremberg,  Berlaymont,  Viglius  de  que  se 
puede  V*  Ex*  fiar.  Dr.  Luis  del  Rio  y  Corteville  podran  dar  a 
V*  Ex»  luz  de  lo  que  huviere  de  hablar.  .  .  .  Noircarmes  conosee 
V.  E"  que  lo  ha  hecho  muy  Men,"  etc. 

2  "  Bien  entendu  que  la  dicte  loy  gen^ralle  ne  soit  en  aulcune 
manifere  appellee  Inquisition,  a  cause  que  naturellement  il  n'y  a 
chose  qui  soit  tant  odieuse  a  ces  nations  septentrionales  que  ce 
vocable  de  VInquisition  d'Espaigne,  nonobstant  que  la  chose  de  soy 
jnesme  et  de  son  commencement  soit  saincte  et  honneste," 


1564]  A  EEMARKABLE  DOCUMENT  69 

fortresses,  to  be  garrisoned  with  Spaniards,  Italians, 
and  Germans— such  were  the  leading  features  in  that 
remarkable  paper.i 

The  manly  and  open  opposition  of  the  nobles  was 
stigmatized  as  a  cabal  by  the  offended  priest.  He  re- 
peatedly whispered  in  the  royal  ear  that  their  league 
was  a  treasonable  conspiracy,  which  the  attorney- 
general  ought  to  prosecute ;  that  the  seigniors  meant  to 
subvert  entirely  the  authority  of  the  sovereign;  that 
they  meant  to  put  their  king  under  tutelage,  to  compel 
him  to  obey  all  their  commands,  to  choose  another 
prince  of  the  blood  for  their  chief,  to  establish  a  republic 
by  the  aid  of  foreign  troops.  If  such  insinuations,  dis- 
tilled thus  secretly  into  the  ear  of  Philip,  who,  like  his 
predecessor,  Dionysius,  took  pleasure  in  listening  daily 
to  charges  against  his  subjects  and  to  the  groans  of  his 
prisoners,^  were  not  likely  to  engender  a  dangerous 
gangrene  in  the  royal  mind,  it  would  be  difl&cult  to 
indicate  any  course  which  would  produce  such  a  result. 
Yet  the  cardinal  maintained  that  he  had  never  done  the 
gentlemen  ill  service,  but  that  ''  they  were  angry  with 
him  for  wishing  to  sustain  the  authority  of  the  master." 
In  almost  every  letter  he  expressed  vague  generalities 

1  Gr.  V.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  Supplement,  73-79.  The  docu- 
ment is  taken  from  the  Granvelle  Collection  of  papers  at  Besan^on. 
It  is  not  stated  whether  it  is  from  the  cardinal's  pen,  but  there  are 
certain  expressions  which  (as  well  as  its  general  tone)  seem  to 
point  out  the  author  beyond  any  reasonable  doubt. 

2  "  L'Archeveque  de  Cambray,"  writes  Morillon  to  Granvelle, 
"m'at  compte  que  le  Roy  survint  oii  il  ouyt  dire  Montigny  sans  etre 
veu  de  Itiy,  que  le  Roy  pouvoit  faire  ce  qu'il  vouloit,  mas  qu'il  ne 
gaigneroit  rien  quant  au  Cardinal  et  que  les  Seigneurs  n'en  vou- 
loient  poinct,"  etc. — Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  Supplement, 
85*. 


70  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

of  excuse,  or  even  approbation,  while  lie  chronicled  each 
daily  fact  which  occui-red  to  their  discredit.  The  facts 
he  particularly  implored  the  king  to  keep  to  himself,  the 
vague  laudation  he  as  urgently  requested  him  to  repeat 
to  those  interested.  Perpetually  dropping  small  in- 
nuendos  like  pebbles  into  the  depths  of  his  master's 
suspicious  soul,  he  knew  that  at  last  the  waters  of  bit- 
terness would  overflow,  but  he  turned  an  ever-smiling 
face  upon  those  who  were  to  be  his  victims.  There  was 
ever  something  in  his  irony  like  the  bland  request  of  the 
inquisitor  to  the  executioner  that  he  would  deal  with 
his  prisoners  gently.  There  was  about  the  same  result 
in  regard  to  such  a  prayer  to  be  expected  from  Philip 
as  from  the  hangman.  Even  if  his  criticisms  had  been 
uniformly  indulgent,  the  position  of  the  nobles  and 
leading  citizens,  thus  subjected  to  a  constant  but  secret 
superintendence,  would  have  been  too  galling  to  be 
tolerated.  They  did  not  know,  so  precisely  as  we  have 
learned  after  three  centuries,  that  all  their  idle  words 
and  careless  gestures,  as  well  as  their  graver  proceedings, 
were  kept  in  a  noting-book  to  be  pored  over  and  conned 
by  rote  in  the  recesses  of  the  royal  cabinet  and  the 
royal  mind;  but  they  suspected  the  espionage  of  the 
cardinal,  and  they  openly  charged  him  with  his  secret 
malignity. 

The  men  who  refused  to  burn  their  fellow-creatures 
for  a  difference  in  religious  opinion  were  stigmatized  as 
demagogues;  as  ruined  spendthrifts  who  wished  to 
escape  from  their  liabilities  in  the  midst  of  revolution- 
ary confusion ;  as  disguised  heretics  who  were  waiting 
for  a  good  opportunity  to  reveal  their  true  characters. 
Montigny,  who,  as  a  Montmorency,  was  nearly  allied 
to  the  constable  and  admiral  of  France,  and  was  in 


1564]  INNUENDO  71 

epistolary  correspondence  witli  those  relatives,  was  held 
up  as  a  Huguenot ;  of  course,  therefore,  in  Philip's  eye, 
the  most  monstrous  of  malefactors.^ 

Although  no  man  could  strew  pious  reflections  and 
holy  texts  more  liberally,  yet  there  was  always  an  after- 
thought even  in  his  most  edifying  letters.  A  corner  of 
the  mask  is  occasionally  lifted,  and  the  deadly  face  of 
slow  but  abiding  vengeance  is  revealed.  *'I  know  very 
well,"  he  wrote,  soon  after  his  fall,  to  Viglius,  ''that 
vengeance  is  the  Lord's — God  is  my  witness  that  I 
pardon  all  the  past."  In  the  same  letter,  nevertheless, 
he  added :  *'  My  theology,  however,  does  not  teach  me 
that  by  enduring  one  is  to  enable  one's  enemies  to  com- 
mit even  greater  wrongs.  If  the  royal  justice  is  not 
soon  put  into  play,  I  shall  be  obliged  to  right  myself. 
This  thing  is  going  on  too  long— patience  exhausted 
changes  to  fury.  'T  is  necessary  that  every  man  should 
assist  himself  as  he  can,  and  when  I  choose  to  throw  the 
game  into  confusion  I  shall  do  it  perhaps  more  notably 
than  the  others."  A  few  weeks  afterward,  writing  to 
the  same  correspondent,  he  observed :  "  "We  shall  have 
to  turn  again  and  rejoice  together.  Whatever  the  king 
commands  I  shall  do,  even  were  I  to  march  into  the  fire ; 
whatever  happens,  and  without  fear  or  respect  for  any 
person,  I  mean  to  remain  the  same  man  to  the  end. 

1  That  both  Montigny  and  his  brother,  Count  Horn,  were  Catho- 
lics, sufficiently  appears  from  this  extract  from  a  private  letter  of 
Montigny,  written  from  Spain  early  in  1567  :  "  J'ai  re§u  un  grand 
eontentement  de  I'asseurance  que  me  donnez  que  nuls  ne  basteront 
de  vous  faire  changer  d'opinion,  en  chose  qui  touche  le  fait  de  la 
religion  anchienne,  qui  est  certes  conforme  a  ce  que  j'en  ay  tous- 
jours  fermement  pense  et  eru,  ors  que  le  diable  est  subtil  et  ses 
ministres."— Willems,  Mengelingen  van  Vaderlandschen  inhoud. 
No.  5,  p.  333. 


72  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

Durate,—ajid.  I  have  a  head  that  is  hard  enough  when  I 
do  undertake  anything,— wee  animtim  despondeo."  ^  Here, 
certainly,  was  significant  foreshadowing  of  the  general 
wrath  to  come,  and  it  was  therefore  of  less  consequence 
that  the  portraits  painted  by  him  of  Berghen,  Horn, 
Montigny,  and  others  were  so  rarely  relieved  by  the 
more  flattering  tints  which  he  occasionally  mingled  with 
the  somber  coloring  of  his  other  pictures.  Especially 
with  regard  to  Count  Egmont  his  conduct  was  some- 
what perplexing  and,  at  first  sight,  almost  inscrutable. 
That  nobleman  had  been  most  violent  in  opposition  to 
his  course,  had  drawn  a  dagger  upon  him,  had  frequently 
covered  him  with  personal  abuse,  and  had  crowned  his 
offensive  conduct  by  the  invention  of  the  memorable 
fool's-cap  livery.  Yet  the  cardinal  usually  spoke  of  him 
with  pity  and  gentle  consideration,  described  him  as 
really  well  disposed  in  the  main,  as  misled  by  others,  as 
a  "friend  of  smoke,"  who  might  easily  be  gained  by 
flattery  and  bribery.  When  there  was  question  of  the 
count's  going  to  Madrid,  the  cardinal  renewed  his  com- 
pliments, with  additional  expression  of  eagerness  that 
they  should  be  communicated  to  their  object.  Whence 
all  this  Christian  meekness  in  the  author  of  the  ban 
against  Orange  and  the  eulogist  of  Alva?  The  true 
explanation  of  this  endurance  on  the  part  of  the  cardinal 
lies  in  the  estimate  which  he  had  formed  of  Egmont's 
character.  Granvelle  had  taken  the  man's  measure,  and 
even  he  could  not  foresee  the  unparalleled  cruelty  and 
dullness  which  were  eventually  to  characterize  Philip's 
conduct  toward  him.  On  the  contrary,  there  was  every 
reason  why  the  cardinal  should  see  in  the  count  a  per- 

1  Groenv.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  287,  288,  311,  312.     Compare 
Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  301. 


1564]  TREATMENT  OF  EGMONT  73 

sonage  whom  brilliant  services,  illustrioTis  rank,  and 
powerful  connections  had  marked  for  a  prosperous 
future.  It  was  even  currently  asserted  that  Philip  was 
about  to  create  him  governor-general  of  the  Nether- 
lands, in  order  to  detach  him  entirely  from  Orange,  and 
to  bind  him  more  closely  to  the  crown.^  He  was  there- 
fore a  man  to  be  forgiven.  Nothing  apparently  but  a 
suspicion  of  heresy  could  damage  the  prospects  of  the 
great  noble,  and  Egmont  was  orthodox  beyond  all  per- 
adventure.  He  was  even  a  bigot  in  the  Catholic  faith. 
He  had  privately  told  the  Duchess  of  Parma  that  he  had 
always  been  desirous  of  seeing  the  edicts  thoroughly 
enforced,  and  he  denounced  as  enemies  all  those  persons 
who  charged  him  with  ever  having  been  in  favor  of 
mitigating  the  system.^  He  was  reported,  to  be  sure, 
at  about  the  time  of  Granvelle's  departure  from  the 
Netherlands,  to  have  said,  ^'■post  pocula,  that  the  quarrel 
was  not  with  the  cardinal,  but  with  the  king,  who  was 
administering  the  public  affairs  very  badly,  even  in  the 
matter  of  religion."  Such  a  bravado,  however,  uttered 
by  a  gentleman  in  his  cups,  when  flushed  with  a  recent 
political  triumph,  could  hardly  outweigh,  in  the  cautious 
calculations  of  Granvelle,  distinct  admissions  in  favor 
of  persecution.  Egmont  in  truth  stood  in  fear  of  the 
Inquisition.  The  hero  of  Gravelines  and  St.-Quentin 
actually  trembled  before  Peter  Titelmann.^  Moreover, 
notwithstanding  all  that  had  passed,  he  had  experienced 

1  ".  .  .  le  Roy,  qui  avoit,  comme  aucuns  veullent  dire,  deliber^ 
de  I'honorer  du  gouvernement  general  du  Pays-Bas  pour  I'obliger 
tant  plus  6troictement  k  son  service  et  de  distraire  de  I'amiti^  du 
pee  d'Orange,  duquel  il  se  defioit  ouvertement. " — Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  121 ;  ix.  217. 

'  "Et  quod  naihi  maxime  placet,  Egmondanus  multum  timet 
Titelmannum."— Morillon  to  Granvelle,  Ibid.,  viii.  425. 


74  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

a  change  in  his  sentiments  in  regard  to  the  cardinal.  He 
frequently  expressed  the  opinion  that,  although  his 
presence  in  the  Netherlands  was  inadmissible,  he  should 
be  glad  to  see  him  pope.  He  had  expressed  strong  dis- 
approbation of  the  buffooning  masquerade  by  which  he 
had  been  ridiculed  at  the  Mansfeld  christening-party. 
When  at  Madrid  he  not  only  spoke  well  of  Granvelle 
himself,  but  would  allow  nothing  disparaging  concern- 
ing him  to  be  uttered  in  his  presence.^  When,  however, 
Egmont  had  fallen  from  favor  and  was  already  a 
prisoner,  the  cardinal  dihgently  exerted  himself  to  place 
under  the  king's  eye  what  he  considered  the  most  damn- 
ing evidence  of  the  count's  imaginary  treason— a  docu- 
ment with  which  the  public  prosecutor  had  not  been 
made  acquainted. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  by  this  retrospect  how  difficult 
it  is  to  seize  all  the  shifting  subtleties  of  this  remarkable 
character.  His  sophisms,  even  when  self -contradictory, 
are  so  adroit  that  they  are  often  hard  to  parry.  He 
made  a  great  merit  to  himself  for  not  having  origi- 
nated the  new  episcopates ;  but  it  should  be  remembered 
that  he  did  his  utmost  to  enforce  the  measure,  which 
was  "  so  holy  a  scheme  that  he  would  sacrifice  for  its 
success  his  fortune  and  his  life."  He  refused  the  arch- 
bishopric of  Mechlin,  but  his  motives  for  so  doing  were 
entirely  sordid.  His  revenues  were  for  the  moment 
diminished,  while  his  personal  distinction  was  not,  in 
his  opinion,  increased  by  the  promotion.  He  refused 
to  accept  it  because  "  it  was  no  addition  to  his  dignity, 
as  he  was  already  cardinal  and  Bishop  of  Arras,"  ^  but 

1  Papiers  d'fetat,  vii.  115-427 ;  viii.  92-94 ;  ix.  565. 
'•i  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  76:  "Pour  que  il  est  plus 
honorable  estre  ung  de  quatre  que  ung  de  dix-sept,  et  n'avoir  be- 


1564]  SUAVITER  ET  FORTITER  75 

in  this  statement  lie  committed  an  important  anach- 
ronism. He  was  not  cardinal  when  he  refused  the  see 
of  Mechlin,  having  received  the  red  hat  upon  February 
26,  1561,  and  having  already  accepted  the  archbishopric 
in  May  of  the  preceding  year.^  He  affirmed  that  "no 
man  would  more  resolutely  defend  the  liberty  and  priv- 
ileges of  the  provinces  than  he  would  do,"  but  he  pre- 
ferred being  tyrannized  by  his  prince  to  maintaining  the 
joyful  entrance.  He  complained  of  the  insolence  of 
the  states  in  meddling  with  the  supplies ;  he  denounced 
the  convocation  of  the  representative  bodies,  by  whose 
action  alone  what  there  was  of  "liberty  and  privilege" 
in  the  land  could  be  guarded;  he  recommended  the 
entire  abolition  of  the  common  councils  in  the  cities. 
He  described  himself  as  having  always  combated  the 
opinion  that  "anything  could  be  accomplished  by 
terror,  death,  and  violence,"  yet  he  recommended  the 
mission  of  Alva,  in  whom  "terror,  death,  and  violence" 
were  incarnate.  He  was  indignant  that  he  should  be 
accused  of  having  advised  the  introduction  of  the 
Spanish  Inquisition,  but  his  reason  was  that  the  term 
sounded  disagreeably  in  northern  ears,  while  the  thing 
was  most  commendable.  He  manifested  much  anxiety 
that  the  public  should  be  disabused  of  their  fear  of  the 
Spanish  Inquisition,  but  he  was  the  indefatigable  sup- 
porter of  the  Netherland  Inquisition,  which  Philip  de- 
clared with  reason  to  be  "the  more  pitiless  institution" 
of  the  two.  He  was  the  author,  not  of  the  edicts,  but 
of  their  reenactment,  verbally  and  literally,  in  all  the 

soing  de  ee  titre  pour  croistre  de  dignity  estant  ya  Cardinal  avec 
VEvescM  d^ Arras,  et  quant  au  prouflSt  je  f eroy  apparoir  qu'au  revenu 
que  je  y  ay  receu  perte  notable,"  etc. 
1  Papiers  d'Etat,  vi.  96-98,  296,  297. 


76  THE  RISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

horrid  extent  to  whicli  they  had  been  carried  by  Charles 
v.,  and  had  recommended  the  use  of  the  emperor's 
name  to  sanctify  the  infernal  scheme.  He  busied  him- 
self personally  in  the  execution  of  these  horrible  laws, 
even  when  judge  and  hangman  slackened.  To  the  last 
he  denounced  all  those  "  who  should  counsel  his  Majesty 
to  permit  a  moderation  of  the  edicts,"  and  warned  the 
king  that  if  he  should  consent  to  the  least  mitigation 
of  their  provisions  things  would  go  worse  in  the  prov- 
inces than  in  France.  ^  He  was  diligent  in  establishing 
the  reinforced  episcopal  Inquisition  side  by  side  with 
these  edicts,  and  with  the  papal  Inquisition  already  in 
full  operation.  He  omitted  no  occasion  of  encouraging 
the  industry  of  all  these  various  branches  in  the  busi- 
ness of  persecution.  When  at  last  the  loud  cry  from 
the  oppressed  inhabitants  of  Flanders  was  uttered  in 
unanimous  denunciation  by  the  four  estates  of  that 
province  of  the  infamous  Titelmann,  the  cardinal's  voice, 
from  the  depths  of  his  luxurious  solitude,  was  heard, 
not  in  sympathy  with  the  poor  innocent  wretches  who 
were  daily  dragged  from  their  humble  homes  to  perish 
by  sword  and  fire,  but  in  pity  for  the  inquisitor  who  was 
doing  the  work  of  heU.  '■'■  I  deeply  regret,"  he  wrote  to 
VigUus,  "  that  the  states  of  Flanders  should  he  pouting 
at  Inquisitor  Titelmann.  Truly  he  has  good  zeal, 
although  sometimes  indiscreet  and  noisy;  still  he  must 
be  supported,  lest  they  put  a  bridle  upon  him,  by  which 
his  authority  will  be  quite  enervated."  ^  The  reader 
who  is  acquainted  with  the  personality  of  Peter  Titel- 
mann can  decide  as  to  the  real  benignity  of  the  joyous 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  480.     Compare  Correspondance  de  Philippe 
n.,  i.  323. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  460,  461.  ' 


1564]  THE  MASK  LIFTED  77 

Epicurean  who  could  tlius  commend  and  encourage  sucli 
a  monster  of  cruelty. 

If  popularity  be  a  test  of  merit  in  a  public  man,  it 
certainly  could  not  be  claimed  by  the  cardinal.  From 
the  moment  when  Gresham  declared  him  to  be  "  hated 
of  all  men,"  down  to  the  period  of  his  departure,  the 
odium  resting  upon  him  had  been  rapidly  extending. 
He  came  to  the  country  with  two  grave  accusations 
resting  upon  his  name.  The  Emperor  Maximilian  as- 
serted that  the  cardinal  had  attempted  to  take  his  life 
by  poison,  and  he  persisted  in  the  truth  of  the  charge 
thus  made  by  him  till  the  day  of  his  death.i  Another 
accusation  was  more  generally  credited.  He  was  the 
author  of  the  memorable  forgery  by  which  the  Land- 
grave Philip  of  Hesse  had  been  entrapped  into  his  long 
imprisonment,^    His  course  in  and  toward  the  Nether- 

1  Apologie  d'Orange,  26.  The  accusation  is  also  alluded  to  in  a 
pamphlet  published  at  the  time  of  the  attempted  assassination  by 
Jaureguy  of  Orange.  "Tu  t'es  bien  ose  addresser  par  eommande- 
ment  de  ton  maistre  au  feu  Empereur  Maximilien,  lorsqu'il  estoit 
encores  Roy  de  Boheme,  et  tu  I'as  empoisonne ;  ee  qu'il  a  declair6 
jusques  a  la  fin  de  sa  vie,  mais  ne  I'osoit  publier  pour  n'irriter  ton 
maitre."— Discours  sur  la  blessure  de  Monseigneur  le  P=*  d'Orange, 
imprim6  en  I'an  1582. 

2  The  story  is  disputed.  Hormayr,  in  the  Austrian  Plutarch, 
denounces  it  as  a  "childish  fabrication,"  as  a  "  false  and  miserable 
invention."  On  the  other  hand,  the  Prince  of  Orange,  who,  being 
at  that  period  a  favorite  page  of  the  emperor,  was  accustomed  to 
hear  and  remember  many  state  secrets,  alludes  most  unequivocally 
to  the  charge  in  a  letter  written  in  1574.  "  Se  souvenant  tons  jours 
des  mots  ewig  und  einig  qui  fust  faict  cydevant  au  contract  de  feu 
Landgrave  de  Hessen."— Archives  et  Correspondance,  v.  63.  It  is 
true  that  the  prince  does  not  here  distinctly  accuse  the  cardinal 
(then  Bishop  of  Arras)  of  the  trick,  but  his  name  was  inseparable 
from  the  anecdote,  whether  true  or  false.  "II  est  vrai,"  says  De 
Thou  (torn,  i.,  liv.  iv.  267),  "qu'on  attribua  une  conduite  si  lache 


78  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1564 

lands  has  been  sufficiently  examined.  Not  a  single 
charge  has  been  made  lightly,  but  only  after  careful 
sifting  of  evidence.  Moreover,  they  are  all  sustained 
mainly  from  the  criminal's  own  lips.  Yet  when  the 
secrecy  of  the  Spanish  cabinet  and  the  Machiavellian 
scheme  of  pohcy  by  which  the  age  was  characterized 
are  considered,  it  is  not  strange  that  there  should  have 
been  misunderstandings  and  contradictions  with  regard 
to  the  man's  character  till  a  full  light  had  been  thrown 
upon  it  by  the  disinterment  of  ancient  documents.  The 
word  "  Durate,"  which  was  the  cardinal's  device,  may  well 
be  inscribed  upon  his  mask,  which  has  at  last  been  torn 
aside,  but  which  was  formed  of  such  durable  materials 
that  it  has  deceived  the  world  for  three  centuries. 

k  I'Eveque  d' Arras,  homme  fourbe  et  ruse,  qui  par  I'alteration  d'une 
seule  lettre  [he  then  explains  the  trick  in  a  note]  avoit  eu  le  secret 
de  tromper  le  Landgrave."  Von  Rommel  relates  the  story  in  the 
same  way  (Philipp  d.  Grossmiith.,  i.  536-542).  Cited  by  Groen  v. 
Prinst.,  V.  65.  Von  Raumer  (Ges.  Eur.,  i.  548)  speaks  of  the  cir- 
cumstance as  a  misunderstanding,  and  not  a  perfidy.  Groen  van 
Prinsterer,  after  handling  the  subject  with  his  usual  acuteness  and 
learning,  maintains  the  truth  of  the  anecdote  (Archives  et  Corre- 
spondance,  v.  65,  66). 


CHAPTER  V 

Return  of  the  three  seigniors  to  the  state  council— Policy  of 
Orange— Corrupt  character  of  the  government— Efforts  of  the 
prince  in  favor  of  reform— Influence  of  Armenteros— Painful 
situation  of  Viglius— His  anxiety  to  retire— Secret  charges  against 
him  transmitted  by  the  duchess  to  Philip— Ominous  signs  of  the 
times— Attention  of  Philip  to  the  details  of  persecution— Execu- 
tion of  Fabricius  and  tumult  at  Antwerp— Horrible  cruelty  toward 
the  Protestants— Remonstrance  of  the  magistracy  of  Bruges  and 
of  the  four  Flemish  estates  against  Titelmann— Obduracy  of 
Philip— Council  of  Trent— Quarrel  for  precedence  between  the 
French  and  Spanish  envoys — Order  for  the  publication  of  the 
Trent  decrees  in  the  Netherlands— Opposition  to  the  measure- 
Reluctance  of  the  duchess — Egmont  accepts  a  mission  to  Spain 
—Violent  debate  in  the  council  concerning  his  instructions— Re- 
markable speech  of  Orange— Apoplexy  of  Viglius— Temporary  ap- 
pointment of  Hopper — Departure  of  Egmont— Disgraceful  scene  at 
Cambray— Character  of  the  archbishop— Egmont  in  Spain— Flat- 
tery and  bribery — Council  of  doctors — Vehement  declarations  of 
Philip— His  instructions  to  Egmont  at  his  departure— Proceedings 
of  Orange  in  regard  to  his  principality— Egmont's  report  to  the 
state  couneil  concerning  his  mission — His  vainglory — Renewed 
orders  from  Philip  to  continue  the  persecution — Indignation  of 
Egmont— Habitual  dissimulation  of  the  king— Reproof  of  Egmont 
by  Orange— Assembly  of  doctors  in  Brussels — Result  of  their  de- 
liberations transmitted  to  Philip— Universal  excitement  in  the 
Netherlands— New  punishment  for  heretics— Interview  at  Ba- 
yonne  between  Catherine  de'  Medici  and  her  daughter,  the  Queen 
of  Spain— Mistaken  views  upon  this  subject — Diplomacy  of  Alva 
—Artful  conduct  of  Catherine— Stringent  letters  from  Philip  to 
the  duchess  with  regard  to  the  Inquisition— Consternation  of  Mar- 

79 


80  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

garet  and  of  Viglius— New  proclamation  of  the  edicts,  the  Inqui- 
sition, and  the  Council  of  Trent— Fury  of  the  people— Resistance 
of  the  leading  seigniors  and  of  the  Brabant  council— Brabant  de- 
clared free  of  the  Inquisition— Prince  Alexander  of  Parma  be- 
trothed to  Donna  Maria  of  Portugal— Her  portrait— Expensive 
preparations  for  the  nuptials— Assembly  of  the  Golden  Fleece- 
Oration  of  Viglius— Wedding  of  Prince  Alexander. 

The  remainder  of  the  year  in  the  spring  of  which  the 
cardinal  had  left  the  Netherlands  was  one  of  anarchy, 
confusion,  and  corruption.  At  first  there  had  been  a 
sensation  of  relief.  Philip  had  exchanged  letters  of 
exceeding  amity  with  Orange,  Egmont,  and  Horn. 
These  three  seigniors  had  written,  immediately  upon 
Granvelle's  retreat,  to  assure  the  king  of  their  willing- 
ness to  obey  the  royal  commands  and  to  resume  their 
duties  at  the  state  council.^  They  had,  however,  assured 
the  duchess  that  the  reappearance  of  the  cardinal  in  the 
country  would  be  the  signal  for  their  instantaneous 
withdrawal.'^  They  appeared  at  the  council  daily,  work- 
ing with  the  utmost  assiduity  often  till  late  into  the 
night.  Orange  had  three  great  objects  in  view,^  by 
attaining  which  the  country,  in  his  opinion,  might  yet 
be  saved,  and  the  threatened  convulsions  averted.  These 
were  to  convoke  the  States-General,  to  moderate  or 
abolish  the  edicts,  and  to  suppress  the  council  of  finance 
and  the  privy  council,  leaving  only  the  council  of  state. 
The  two  first  of  these  points,  if  gained,  would,  of  course, 
subvert  the  whole  absolute  policy  which  Philip  and 
Granvelle  had  enforced ;  it  was  therefore  hardly  prob- 
able that  any  impression  would  be  made  upon  the  secret 

1  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  71,  72. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  294-297. 

3  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  222,  223. 


1564]  CORRUPTION  81 

determination  of  the  government  in  these  respects.  As 
to  the  council  of  state,  the  limited  powers  of  that  body, 
under  the  administration  of  the  cardinal,  had  formed 
one  of  the  principal  complaints  against  that  minister. 
The  justice  and  finance  councils  were  sinks  of  iniquity. 
The  most  barefaced  depravity  reigned  supreme.  A 
gangrene  had  spread  through  the  whole  government. 
The  public  functionaries  were  notoriously  and  outra- 
geously venal.  The  administration  of  justice  had  been 
poisoned  at  the  fountain,  and  the  people  were  unable  to 
slake  their  daily  thirst  at  the  polluted  stream.  There 
was  no  law  but  the  law  of  the  longest  purse.  The 
highest  dignitaries  of  Philip's  appointment  had  become 
the  most  mercenary  hucksters  who  ever  converted  the 
divine  temple  of  justice  into  a  den  of  thieves.  Law  was 
an  article  of  merchandise,  sold  by  judges  to  the  highest 
bidder.  A  poor  customer  could  obtain  nothing  but 
stripes  and  imprisonment,  or,  if  tainted  with  suspicion 
of  heresy,  the  fagot  or  the  sword,  but  for  the  rich  every- 
thing was  attainable.  Pardons  for  the  most  atrocious 
crimes,  passports,  safe-conducts,  ofl&ces  of  trust  and 
honor,  were  disposed  of  at  auction  to  the  highest  bidder.^ 
Against  all  this  sea  of  corruption  did  the  brave  William 
of  Orange  set  his  breast,  undaunted  and  .unflinching. 
Of  all  the  conspicuous  men  in  the  land,  he  was  the  only 
one  whose  worst  enemy  had  never  hinted,  through  the 
whole  course  of  his  public  career,  that  his  hands  had 
known  contamination.  His  honor  was  ever  untarnished 
by  even  a  breath  of  suspicion.  The  cardinal  could  ac- 
cuse him  of  pecuniary  embarrassment,  by  which  a  large 
proportion  of  his  revenues  were  necessarily  diverted  to 

1  Hoofd,  ii.  48,  49.     Hopper,  Rec.  et  M6in.,  40.     Vit.  Viglii, 
38,  39. 

VOL.  II.— 6 


82  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

the  liquidation  of  his  debts,  but  he  could  not  suggest 
that  the  prince  had  ever  freed  himself  from  difficulties 
by  plunging  his  hands  into  the  public  treasury,  when  it 
might  easily  have  been  opened  to  him. 

It  was  soon,  however,  sufficiently  obvious  that  as  des- 
perate a  struggle  was  to  be  made  with  the  many-headed 
monster  of  general  corruption  as  with  the  cardinal  by 
whom  it  had  been  so  long  fed  and  governed.  The 
prince  was  accused  of  ambition  and  intrigue.  It  was 
said  that  he  was  determined  to  concentrate  all  the 
powers  of  government  in  the  state  council,  which  was 
thus  to  become  an  omnipotent  and  irresponsible  senate, 
while  the  king  would  be  reduced  to  the  condition  of  a 
Venetian  doge.^  It  was,  of  course,  suggested  that  it 
was  the  aim  of  Orange  to  govern  the  new  tribunal  of 
ten.  No  doubt  the  prince  was  ambitious.  Birth, 
wealth,  genius,  and  virtue  could  not  have  been  be- 
stowed in  such  eminent  degree  on  any  man  without 
carrying  with  them  the  determination  to  assert  their 
value.  It  was  not  his  wish  so  much  as  it  was  the  neces- 
sary law  of  his  being  to  impress  himself  upon  his  age 
and  to  rule  his  feUow-men.  But  he  practised  no  arts  to 
arrive  at  the  supremacy  which  he  felt  must  always 
belong  to  him,  whatever  might  be  his  nominal  position 
in  the  political  hierarchy.  He  was  already,  although 
but  just  turned  of  thirty  years,  vastly  changed  from  the 
brilliant  and  careless  grandee  as  he  stood  at  the  hour 
of  the  imperial  abdication.  He  was  becoming  care-worn 
in  face,  thin  of  figure,  sleepless  of  habit.  The  wrongs  of 
which  he  was  the  daily  witness,  the  absolutism,  the 

1  "Comme  par  un  coup  d'essay  pensa  d'abolir  le  conseil 
priv6  .  .  .  pour  abolir  la  puissance  du  Eoy  et  le  rendre  semblable 
a  un  ducq  de  Venise,"  etc.— Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1564]  THE  PRINCE  OP  ORANGE  83 

cruelty,  the  rottenness  of  the  government,  had  marked 
his  face  with  premature  furrows.  "  They  say  that  the 
prince  is  very  sad,"  wrote  Morillon  to  Granvelle,  ''  and 
't  is  easy  to  read  as  much  in  his  face.  They  say  he  can- 
not sleep."  1  Truly  might  the  monarch  have  taken  warn- 
ing that  here  was  a  man  who  was  dangerous  and  who 
thought  too  much.  "Sleek-headed  men,  and  such  as 
slept  o'  nights,"  would  have  been  more  eligible  function- 
aries, no  doubt,  in  the  royal  estimation,  but  for  a  brief 
period  the  king  was  content  to  use,  to  watch,  and  to 
suspect  the  man  who  was  one  day  to  be  his  great  and 
invincible  antagonist.  He  continued  assiduous  at  the 
council,  and  he  did  his  best,  by  entertaining  nobles  and 
citizens  at  his  hospitable  mansion,  to  cultivate  good 
relations  with  large  numbers  of  his  countrymen.  He 
soon,  however,  had  become  disgusted  with  the  court. 
Egmont  was  more  lenient  to  the  foul  practices  which 
prevailed  there,  and  took  almost  a  childish  pleasure  in 
dining  at  the  table  of  the  duchess,  dressed,  as  were  many 
of  the  younger  nobles,  in  short  camlet  doublet  with  the 
wheat-sheaf  buttons. 

The  prince  felt  more  unwilling  to  compromise  his 
personal  dignity  by  countenancing  the  flagitious  pro- 
ceedings and  the  contemptible  supremacy  of  Armenteros, 
and  it  was  soon  very  obvious,  therefore,  that  Egmont 
was  a  greater  favorite  at  court  than  Orange.  At  the 
same  time  the  count  was  also  diligently  cultivating  the 
good  graces  of  the  middle  and  lower  classes  in  Brussels, 
shooting  with  the  burghers  at  the  popinjay,  calling 
every  man  by  his  name,  and  assisting  at  jovial  banquets 
in  town  house  or  gildhall.  The  prince,  although  at 
times  a  necessary  partaker  also  in  these  popular  amuse- 

^  Papierg  d'Etat;  vii.  434. 


84  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

ments,  could  find  small  cause  for  rejoicing  in  the  aspect 
of  affairs.  When  his  business  led  him  to  the  palace,  he 
was  sometimes  forced  to  wait  in  the  antechamber  for  an 
hour,  while  Secretary  Armenteros  was  engaged  in  private 
consultation  with  Margaret  upon  the  most  important 
matters  of  administration.  It  could  not  be  otherwise 
than  gaUing  to  the  pride  and  offensive  to  the  patriotism 
of  the  prince  to  find  great  public  transactions  intrusted 
to  such  hands.  Thomas  de  Armenteros  was  a  mere 
private  secretary — a  simple  clerk.  He  had  no  right  to 
have  cognizance  of  important  affairs,  which  could  only 
come  before  his  Majesty's  sworn  advisers.  He  was, 
moreover,  an  infamous  peculator.  He  was  rolling  up  a 
fortune  with  great  rapidity  by  his  shameless  traffic  in 
benefices,  charges,  offices,  whether  of  church  or  state. 
His  name  of  Armenteros  was  popularly  converted  into 
Argenteros,^  in  order  to  symbolize  the  man  who  was 
made  of  public  money.  His  confidential  intimacy  with 
the  duchess  procured  for  him  also  the  name  of  ^'  madam's 
barber,"^  in  allusion  to  the  famous  ornaments  of  Mar- 
garet's upper  lip,  and  to  the  celebrated  influence  enjoyed 
by  the  barbers  of  the  Duke  of  Savoy  and  of  Louis  XI. 
This  man  sold  dignities  and  places  of  high  responsibility 
at  public  auction.*  The  regent  not  only  connived  at 
these  proceedings,  which  would  have  been  base  enough, 
but  she  was  full  partner  in  the  disgraceful  commerce. 
Through  the  agency  of  the  secretary,  she,  too,  was 
amassing  a  large  private  fortune.^     "  The  duchess  has 

1  Papiers  d'fetat,  vii.  593. 

2  Ibid.,  viii.  650;  ix.  339.  »  jbid.,  viii.  650. 

*  Ibid.,  vii.  635-678.     Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives  et  Correspon- 
dance,  i.  405,  406. 

5  "Mesmes  aucuns,  pour  la  rendre  odieuse  au  peuple  semoyent 


1564]  INFLUENCE  OF  ARMENTEROS  85 

gone  into  the  business  of  vending  places  to  the  highest 
bidders,"  said  Morillon,  ^'with  the  bit  between  her 
teeth."  1  The  spectacle  presented  at  the  council-board 
was  often  sufficiently  repulsive  not  only  to  the  cardi- 
nalists,  who  were  treated  with  elaborate  insolence,  but 
to  all  men  who  loved  honor  and  justice,  or  who  felt  an 
interest  in  the  prosperity  of  government.  There  was 
nothing  majestic  in  the  appearance  of  the  duchess  as 
she  sat  conversing  apart  with  Armenteros,  whispering, 
pinching,  giggling,  or  disputing,  while  important  affairs 
of  state  were  debated,  concerning  which  the  secretary 
had  no  right  to  be  informed.^  It  was  inevitable  that 
Orange  should  be  offended  to  the  utmost  by  such  pro- 
ceedings, although  he  was  himself  treated  with  com- 
parative respect.  As  for  the  ancient  adherents  of 
Granvelle,  the  Bordeys,  Baves,  and  Morillons,  they 
were  forbidden  by  the  favorite  even  to  salute  him  in 
the  streets.  Berlaymont  was  treated  by  the  duchess  with 
studied  insult.  "  What  is  the  man  talking  about?"  she 
would  ask  with  languid  superciliousness,  if  he  attempted 
to  express  his  opinion  in  the  state  council.^  Viglius, 
whom  Berlaymont  accused  of  doing  his  best,  without 

un  bruit  qu'elle  amassoit  un  grand  thresor  de  derniers  du  Roy, 
oultre  une  infinite  d'or  et  d'argent  qii'elle  tiroit  subtilement  des 
offices,  benefices,  et  remissions  qu'elle  faisoit  vendre  soubs  main  en 
beaux  deniers  comptant  par  le  dit  Armenteros."— Pontus  Payen  MS. 
The  correspondence  of  the  time  proves  that  the  story  was  no 
calumny,  but  an  indisputable  fact. 

1  "Son  Alteze  y  vat  bride  avallee."— Papiers  d'f]tat,  vii.  635. 

2  "  L'aultre  jour,  Van  der  Aa  me  diet  avec  larmes  qu'il  ne  scavoit 
plus  comporter  les  termes  que  I'on  y  tint :  parlant  k  I'oreille,  riant, 
picquant,  debatant  et  donnant  souvent  des  lourdes  attaches,  et 
quand  Hostilio  y  est  aussi  present  pour  escoulter." — Ibid.,  viii, 
57,  58.  3  Ibid.,  ix.  238. 


86  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1564 

success,  to  make  his  peace  with  the  seigniors,  was  in 
even  still  greater  disgrace  than  his  fellow-cardinalists. 
He  longed,  he  said,  to  be  in  Burgundy,  drinking  Gran- 
velle's  good  wine.i  His  patience  under  the  daily  insults 
which  he  received  from  the  government  made  him  des- 
picable in  the  eyes  of  his  own  party.  He  was  described 
by  his  friends  as  pusillanimous  to  an  incredible  extent, 
timid  from  excess  of  riches,  afraid  of  his  own  shadow.^ 
He  was  becoming  exceedingly  pathetic,  expressing  fre- 
quently a  desire  to  depart  and  end  his  days  in  peace. 
His  faithful  Hopper  sustained  and  consoled  him,  but  even 
Joachim  could  not  soothe  his  sorrows  when  he  reflected 
that,  after  all  the  work  performed  by  himself  and  col- 
leagues, ''they  had  only  been  beating  the  bush  for 
others,"^  while  their  own  share  in  the  spoils  had  been 
withheld.  Nothing  could  well  be  more  contumelious 
than  Margaret's  treatment  of  the  learned  Frisian. 
When  other  councilors  were  summoned  to  a  session 
at  three  o'clock,  the  president  was  invited  at  four.  It 
was  quite  impossible  for  him  to  have  an  audience  of  the 
duchess  except  in  the  presence  of  the  inevitable  Armen- 
teros.  He  was  not  allowed  to  open  his  mouth,  even 
when  he  occasionally  plucked  up  heart  enough  to  at- 
tempt the  utterance  of  his  opinions.  His  authority'  was 
completely  dead.  Even  if  he  essayed  to  combat  the 
convocation  of  the  States-General  by  the  arguments 
which  the  duchess,  at  his  suggestion,  had  often  used  for 
the  purpose,  he  was  treated  with  the  same  indifference. 
''The  poor  president,"  wrote  Granvelle  to  the  king's 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  223. 

2  Papiers  d'fitat,  viii.  267,  311. 

3  "Qu'on    aurat  battu  le  buisson  pour  la  noblesse."— Ibid., 
viii.  57,  58. 


1564]  "POOR  VIGLroS"  87 

chief  secretary,  Gonzalo  Perez,  "  is  afraid,  as  I  hear,  to 
speak  a  word,  and  is  made  to  write  exactly  what  they 
tell  him."  At  the  same  time  the  poor  president,  thus 
maltreated  and  mortified,  had  the  vanity  occasionally  to 
imagine  himself  a  bold  and  formidable  personage.  The 
man  whom  his  most  intimate  friends  described  as  afraid 
of  his  own  shadow  described  himself  to  Granvelle  as 
one  who  went  his  own  gait,  speaking  his  mind  frankly 
upon  every  opportunity,  and  compelling  people  to  fear 
him  a  little,  even  if  they  did  not  love  him.  But  the 
cardinal  knew  better  than  to  believe  in  this  magnani- 
mous picture  of  the  doctoi-'s  fancy.^ 

Viglius  was  anxious  to  retire,  but  unwilling  to  have 
the  appearance  of  being  disgraced.  He  felt  instinctively, 
although  deceived  as  to  the  actual  facts,  that  his  great 
patron  had  been  defeated  and  banished.  He  did  not 
wish  to  be  placed  in  the  same  position.  He  was  de- 
sirous, as  he  piously  expressed  himself,  of  withdrawing 
from  the  world,  ''that  he  might  balance  his  accounts 
with  the  Lord  before  leaving  the  lodgings  of  life." 
He  was,  however,  disposed  to  please  ''the  master"  as 
well  as  the  Lord.  He  wished  to  have  the  royal  permis- 
sion to  depart  in  peace.  In  his  own  lofty  language,  he 
wished  to  be  sprinkled,  on  taking  his  leave,  "with  the 
holy  water  of  the  court."  Moreover,  he  was  fond  of  his 
salary,  although  he  disliked  the  sarcasms  of  the  duchess. 
Egmont  and  others  had  advised  him  to  abandon  the 
oflBce  of  president  to  Hopper,  in  order,  as  he  was  get- 
ting feeble,  to  reserve  his  whole  strength  for  the  state 
council.  Viglius  did  not  at  all  relish  the  proposition. 
He  said  that  by  giving  up  the  seals,  and  with  them  the* 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  77-91,  190,  266,  372,  377,  409,  410,  425, 
426,  619. 


88  THE  EISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [15G4 

rank  and  salary  whicli  they  conferred,  lie  should  become 
a  deposed  saint.  He  had  no  inclination,  as  long  as  he 
remained  on  the  ground  at  all,  to  part  with  those  emolu- 
ments and  honors,  and  to  be  converted  merely  into  the 
"  ass  of  the  state  council."  ^  He  had,  however,  with  the 
sagacity  of  an  old  navigator,  already  thrown  out  his 
anchor  into  the  best  holding-ground  during  the  storms 
which  he  foresaw  were  soon  to  sweep  the  state.  Before 
the  close  of  the  year  which  now  occupies  us,  the  learned 
doctor  of  laws  had  become  a  doctor  of  divinity  also,  and 
had  already  secured,  by  so  doing,  the  wealthy  prebend 
of  St.  Bavon  of  Ghent.  ^  This  would  be  a  consolation 
in  the  loss  of  secular  dignities,  and  a  recompense  for  the 
cold  looks  of  the  duchess.  He  did  not  scruple  to  ascribe 
the  pointed  dislike  which  Margaret  manifested  toward 
him  to  the  awe  in  which  she  stood  of  his  stern  integrity 
of  character.  The  true  reason  why  Armenteros  and  the 
duchess  disliked  him  was  because,  in  his  own  words, 
''  he  was  not  of  their  mind  with  regard  to  lotteries,  the 
sale  of  offices,  advancement  to  abbej^s,  and  many  other 
things  of  the  kind,  by  which  they  were  in  such  a  hurry 
to  make  their  fortune."  Upon  another  occasion  he  ob- 
served, in  a  letter  to  Granvelle,  that  "all  offices  were 
sold  to  the  highest  bidder,  and  that  the  cause  of  Mar- 
garet's resentment  against  both  the  cardinal  and  himself 
was  that  they  had  so  long  prevented  her  from  making 
the  profit  which  she  was  now  doing  from  the  sale  of 
benefices,  offices,  and  other  favors."  ^ 

The  duchess,  on  her  part,  characterized  the  proceed- 

1  "Et  de  me  laisser  contenter  d'estre  I'asne  du  conseil-d'^tat." 
— Papiers  d'fitat,  viii.  192. 

2  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  ii.  318-320. 

3  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  265,  405,  406. 


1564]     MAEGARET  AGAINST  THE  CAEDINALISTS         89 

ings  and  policy,  both  past  and  present,  of  the  cardinalists 
as  factious,  corrupt,  and  selfish  in  the  last  degree.  She 
assured  her  brother  that  the  simony,  rapine,  and  dis- 
honesty of  Granvelle,  Viglius,  and  all  theii*  followers 
had  brought  affairs  into  the  ruinous  condition  which 
was  then  but  too  apparent.  They  were  doing  their 
best,  she  said,  since  the  cardinal's  departure,  to  show, 
by  their  sloth  and  opposition,  that  they  were  determined 
to  allow  nothing  to  prosper  in  his  absence.  To  quote 
her  own  vigorous  expression  to  Philip — "Viglius  made 
her  suffer  the  pains  of  hell."i  She  described  him  as 
perpetually  resisting  the  course  of  the  administration, 
and  she  threw  out  dark  suspicions  not  only  as  to  his 
honesty  but  his  orthodoxy.  Philip  lent  a  greedy  ear  to 
these  scandalous  hints  concerning  the  late  omnipotent 
minister  and  his  friends.  It  is  an  instructive  lesson  in 
human  history  to  look  through  the  cloud  of  dissimulation 
in  which  the  actors  of  this  remarkable  epoch  were  ever 
enveloped,  and  to  watch  them  all  stabbing  fiercely  at 
each  other  in  the  dark,  with  no  regard  to  previous 
friendship  or  even  present  professions.  It  is  edifying 
to  see  the  cardinal,  with  all  his  genius  and  all  his  grim- 
ace, corresponding  on  familiar  terms  with  Armenteros, 
who  was  holding  him  up  to  obloquy  upon  all  occasions ; 
to  see  Philip  inclining  his  ear  in  pleased  astonishment 
to  Margaret's  disclosures  concerning  the  cardinal,  whom 
he  was  at  the  very  instant  assuring  of  his  undiminished 
confidence  j^  and  to  see  Viglius,  the  author  of  the  edict 
of  1550,  and  the  uniform  opponent  of  any  mitigation  in 
its  horrors,  silently  becoming  involved,  without  the  least 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  314. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  vii.  593 ;  viii.  91-94.     Corresp.  de  Philippe  II., 
i.  309-317. 


90  THE  EISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1564 

suspicion  of  the  fact,  in  the  meshes  of  Inquisitor  Titel- 
mann.  Upon  Philip's  eager  solicitations  for  further 
disclosures,  Margaret  accordingly  informed  her  brother 
of  additional  facts  communicated  to  her,  after  oaths  of 
secrecy  had  been  exchanged,  by  Titelmann  and  his  col- 
league Del  Canto.  They  had  assured  her,  she  said,  that 
there  were  grave  doubts  touching  the  orthodoxy  of 
Viglius.  He  had  consorted  with  heretics  during  a  large 
portion  of  his  life,  and  had  put  many  suspicious  persons 
into  office.  As  to  his  nepotism,  simony,  and  fraud, 
there  was  no  doubt  at  all.  He  had  richly  provided  all 
his  friends  and  relations  in  Friesland  with  benefices. 
He  had  become  in  his  old  age  a  priest  and  churchman 
in  order  to  snatch  the  provostship  of  St.  Bavon,  al- 
though his  infirmities  did  not  allow  him  to  say  mass, 
or  even  to  stand  erect  at  the  altar.  The  inquisitors  had 
further  accused  him  of  having  stolen  rings,  jewels,  plate, 
linen,  beds,  tapestry,  and  other  furniture  from  the 
establishment,  all  which  property  he  had  sent  to  Fries- 
land,  and  of  having  seized  one  hundred  thousand  florins 
in  ready  money  which  had  belonged  to  the  last  abbe— 
an  act  consequently  of  pure  embezzlement.  The  duchess 
afterward  transmitted  to  Philip  an  inventory  of  the 
plundered  property,  including  the  furniture  of  nine 
houses,  and  begged  him  to  command  Viglius  to  make 
instant  restitution. ^  If  there  be  truth  in  the  homely 
proverb  that  in  case  of  certain  quarrels  honest  men 
recover  their  rights,  it  is  perhaps  equally  certain  that 
when  distinguished  public  personages  attack  each  other 
historians  may  arrive  at  the  truth.  Here  certainly  are 
edifying  pictures  of  the  corruption  of  the  Spanish  re- 
gency in  the  Netherlands,  painted  by  the  president  of 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  i.  314-320,  350,  351. 


1564]  EXECUTION  OF  FABEICIUS  91 

the  state  conncilj  and  of  the  dishonesty  of  the  president, 
painted  by  the  regent. 

A  remarkable  tumult  occurred  in  October  of  this  year 
at  Antwerp.  A  Carmelite  monk,  Christopher  Smith, 
commonly  called  Fabricius,  had  left  a  monastery  in 
Bruges,  adopted  the  principles  of  the  Reformation,  and 
taken  to  himself  a  wife.  He  had  resided  for  a  time  in 
England ;  but,  invited  by  his  friends,  he  had  afterward 
undertaken  the  dangerous  charge  of  gospel  teacher  in 
the  commercial  metropolis  of  the  Netherlands.  He  was, 
however,  soon  betrayed  to  the  authorities  by  a  certain 
bonnet-dealer,  popularly  called  Long  Margaret,  who  had 
pretended,  for  the  sake  of  securing  the  informer's  fee,  to 
be  a  convert  to  his  doctrines.  He  was  seized  and  im- 
mediately put  to  the  torture.  He  manfully  refused  to 
betray  any  members  of  his  congregation,  as  manfully 
avowed  and  maintained  his  religious  creed.  He  was 
condemned  to  the  flames,  and  during  the  interval  which 
preceded  his  execution  he  comforted  his  friends  by  let- 
ters of  advice,  religious  consolation,  and  encouragement, 
which  he  wrote  from  his  dungeon.  He  sent  a  message 
to  the  woman  who  had  betrayed  him,  assuring  her  of  his 
forgiveness,  and  exhorting  her  to  repentance.  His  calm- 
ness, wisdom,  and  gentleness  excited  the  admiration  of 
all.  When,  therefore,  this  humble  imitator  of  Christ 
was  led  through  the  streets  of  Antwerp  to  the  stake,  the 
popular  emotion  was  at  once  visible.  To  the  multitude 
who  thronged  about  the  executioners  with  threatening 
aspect,  he  addressed  an  urgent  remonstrance  that  they 
would  not  compromise  their  own  safety  by  a  tumult  in 
his  cause.  He  invited  all,  however,  to  remain  steadfast 
to  the  great  truth  for  which  he  was  about  to  lay  down 
his  life.     The  crowd,  as  they  followed  the  procession  of 


92  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

hangmen,  halberdmen,  and  magistrates,  sang  the  Hun- 
dred and  Thirtieth  Psalm  in  full  chorus.  As  the  victim 
arrived  upon  the  market-place,  he  knelt  upon  the  ground 
to  pray  for  the  last  time.  He  was,  however,  rudely- 
forced  to  rise  by  the  executioner,  who  immediately 
chained  him  to  the  stake  and  fastened  a  leathern  strap 
around  his  throat.  At  this  moment  the  popular  indig- 
nation became  uncontrollable;  stones  were  showered 
upon  the  magistrates  and  soldiers,  who,  after  a  slight 
resistance,  fled  for  their  lives.  The  foremost  of  the  in- 
surgents dashed  into  the  inclosed  arena  to  rescue  the 
prisoner.  It  was  too  late.  The  executioner,  even  as  he 
fled,  had  crushed  the  victim's  head  with  a  sledge-ham- 
mer and  pierced  him  through  and  through  with  a  pon- 
iard. Some  of  the  bystanders  maintained  afterward 
that  his  fingers  and  lips  were  seen  to  move,  as  if  in  feeble 
prayer,  for  a  little  time  longer,  until,  as  the  fire  mounted, 
he  fell  into  the  flames.  For  the  remainder  of  the  day, 
after  the  fire  had  entirely  smoldered  to  ashes,  the 
charred  and  half-consumed  body  of  the  victim  remained 
on  the  market-place,  a  ghastly  spectacle  to  friend  and 
foe.  It  was  afterward  bound  to  a  stone  and  cast  into  the 
Schelde.  Such  was  the  doom  of  Christopher  Fabricius 
for  having  preached  Christianity  in  Antwerp.  During 
the  night  an  anonymous  placard,  written  with  blood, 
was  posted  upon  the  wall  of  the  town  house,  stating  that 
there  were  men  in  the  city  who  would  signally  avenge 
his  murder.  Nothing  was  done,  however,  toward  the 
accomplishment  of  the  threat.  The  king,  when  he  re- 
ceived the  intelligence  of  the  transaction,  was  furious 
with  indignation,  and  wrote  savage  letters  to  his  sister, 
commanding  instant  vengeance  to  be  taken  upon  all 
concerned  in  so  foul  a  riot.    As  one  of  the  persons  en- 


1564]       REMONSTEANCES  AGAINST  TITELMANN  93 

gaged  had,  however,  been  arrested  and  immediately- 
hanged,  and  as  the  rest  had  effected  their  escape,  the 
affair  was  suffered  to  drop.^ 

The  scenes  of  outrage,  the  frantic  persecutions,  were 
fast  becoming  too  horrible  to  be  looked  upon  by  Catholic 
or  Calvinist.  The  prisons  swarmed  with  victims,  the 
streets  were  thronged  with  processions  to  the  stake. 
The  population  of  thriving  cities,  particularly  in  Flan- 
ders, was  maddened  by  the  spectacle  of  so  much  bar- 
barity inflicted,  not  upon  criminals,  but  usually  upon 
men  remarkable  for  propriety  of  conduct  and  blameless 
lives.  It  was  precisely  at  this  epoch  that  the  burgo- 
masters, senators,  and  council  of  the  city  of  Bruges  (all 
Catholics)  humbly  represented  to  the  duchess  regent 
that  Peter  Titelmann,  inquisitor  of  the  faith,  against  all 
forms  of  law,  was  daily  exercising  inquisition  among  the 
inhabitants,  not  only  against  those  suspected  or  accused 
of  heresy,  but  against  all,  however  untainted  their  char- 
acters; that  he  was  daily  citing  before  him  whatever 
persons  he  liked,  men  or  women,  compelling  them  by 
force  to  say  whatever  it  pleased  him ;  that  he  was  drag- 
ging people  from  their  houses,  and  even  from  the  sacred 
precincts  of  the  church— often  in  revenge  for  verbal  in- 
juries to  himself,  always  under  pretext  of  heresy,  and 
without  form  or  legal  warrant  of  any  kind.  They  there- 
fore begged  that  he  might  be  compelled  to  make  use  of 
preparatory  examinations  with  the  cooperation  of  the 
senators  of  the  city,  to  suffer  that  witnesses  should  make 
their  depositions  without  being  intimidated  by  menace, 
and  to  conduct  all  his  subsequent  proceedings  according 
to  legal  forms,  which  he  had  uniformly  violated,  publicly 

1  Strada,  iv.  143,  144.  Hist,  des  Martyrs,  apud  Brandt,  i. 
262-264.     Compare  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  440-443. 


94  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

declaring  that  lie  would  conduct  himseK  according  to  his 
own  pleasure.^ 

The  four  estates  of  Flanders  having,  in  a  solemn  ad- 
dress to  the  king,  represented  the  same  facts,  concluded 
their  brief  but  vigorous  description  of  Titelmann's  enor- 
mities by  calling  upon  Philip  to  suppress  these  horrible 
practices,  so  manifestly  in  violation  of  the  ancient  char- 
ters which  he  had  sworn  to  support.^  It  may  be  sup- 
posed that  the  appeal  to  Philip  would  be  more  likely  to 
call  down  a  royal  benediction  than  the  reproof  solicited 
upon  the  inquisitor's  head.  In  the  privy  council  the 
petitions  and  remonstrances  were  read,  and,  in  the 
words  of  the  president,  "  found  to  be  in  extremely  bad 
taste."  ^  In  the  debate  which  followed,  Viglius  and  his 
friends  recalled  to  the  duchess,  in  earnest  language,  the 
decided  will  of  the  king,  which  had  been  so  often  ex- 
pressed. A  faint  representation  was  made,  on  the  other 
hand,  of  the  dangerous  consequences  in  case  the  people 
were  driven  to  a  still  deeper  despair.  The  result  of  the 
movement  was  but  meager.  The  duchess  announced  that 
she  could  do  nothing  in  the  matter  of  the  request  until 
further  information,  but  that  meantime  she  had  charged 
Titelmann  to  conduct  himself  in  his  office  "with  dis- 
cretion and  modesty."*  The  discretion  and  modesty, 
however,  never  appeared  in  any  modification  of  the 
inquisitor's  proceedings,  and  he  continued  unchecked  in 
his  infamous  career  until  death,  which  did  not  occur  till 
several  years  afterward.    In  truth,  Margaret  was  her- 

1  Brandt,  i.  278,  279.  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  434-4:38.  Corre- 
spondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  329-331. 

2  Brandt,  ubi  sup.  **  Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  434. 

*  Ibid.,  viii.  439:  "De  se  eondnyre  en  I'exerciee  de  son  office 
avec  toute  discretion,  modestie  et  respect." 


1564]  COUNCIL  OF   TRENT  95 

seK  in  mortal  fear  of  this  horrible  personage.  He  be- 
sieged her  chamber  door  almost  daily,  before  she  had 
risen,  insisting  upon  audiences,  which,  notwithstanding 
her  repugnance  to  the  man,  she  did  not  dare  to  refuse. 
"  May  I  perish,"  said  Morillon,  "  if  she  does  not  stand 
in  exceeding  awe  of  Titelmann.^  Under  such  circum- 
stances, sustained  by  the  King  of  Spain,  the  duchess  in 
Brussels,  the  privy  council,  and  by  a  leading  member  of 
what  had  been  thought  the  liberal  party,  it  was  not  diffi- 
cult for  the  Inquisition  to  maintain  its  ground,  notwith- 
standing the  solemn  protestations  of  the  estates  and  the 
suppressed  curses  of  the  people. 

Philip,  so  far  from  having  the  least  disposition  to 
yield  in  the  matter  of  the  great  religious  persecution, 
was  more  determined  as  to  his  course  than  ever.  He 
had  already,  as  early  as  August  of  this  year,  despatched 
orders  to  the  duchess  that  the  decrees  of  the  Council  of 
Trent  should  be  published  and  enforced  throughout  the 
Netherlands.^  The  memorable  quarrel  as  to  precedency 
between  the  French  and  Spanish  delegates  had  given 
some  hopes  of  a  diiferent  determination.  Nevertheless, 
those  persons  who  imagined  that,  in  consequence  of  this 
quarrel  of  etiquette,  Philip  would  slacken  in  his  allegiance 
to  the  Church,  were  destined  to  be  bitterly  mistaken. 
He  informed  his  sister  that,  in  the  common  cause  of 
Christianity,  he  should  not  be  swayed  by  personal  re- 
sentments.^ How,  indeed,  could  a  different  decision  be 
expected  ?    His  envoy  at  Rome,  as  well  as  his  represen- 

1  "Dispeream,"  writes  Morillon  to  Granvelle,  "si  ipsa  non 
timeat  Titelmannum  et  del  Campo  qui  iudies  etiam  ilia  invita,  ante 
fores  eubieuli  ejus  versantur,"  etc.— Papiers  d'Etat,  viii.  425,  426. 

2  Strada,  iv.  147.     Hopper,  Rec.  et  M6m.,  51  sqq. 
^  Strada,  ubi  sup. 


96  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH   EEPUBLIC         [1564 

tatives  at  the  council,  had  universally  repudiated  all 
doubts  as  to  the  sanctity  of  its  decrees.  ''  To  doubt  the 
infallibility  of  the  council,  as  some  have  dared  to  do," 
said  Francis  de  Vargas,  "and  to  think  it  capable  of 
error,  is  the  most  devilish  heresy  of  all.  Nothing  could 
so  much  disturb  and  scandalize  the  world  as  such  a 
sentiment.  Therefore  the  Archbishop  of  Granada  told, 
very  properly,  the  Bishop  of  Tortosa  that  if  he  should 
express  such  an  opinion  in  Spain  they  would  burn  him."  ^ 
These  strenuous  notions  were  shared  by  the  king.  There- 
fore, although  all  Europe  was  on  tiptoe  with  expectation 
to  see  how  Philip  would  avenge  himself  for  the  slight  put 
upon  his  ambassador,  Philip  disappointed  all  Europe. 

In  August,  1564,  he  wrote  to  the  duchess  regent  that 
the  decrees  were  to  be  proclaimed  and  enforced  without 
delay.  They  related  to  three  subjects— the  doctrines  to 
be  inculcated  by  the  Church,  the  reformation  of  ecclesi- 
astical morals,  and  the  education  of  the  people.  General 
police  regulations  were  issued  at  the  same  time,  by  which 
heretics  were  to  be  excluded  from  all  share  in  the  usual 
conveniences  of  society,  and  were  in  fact  to  be  strictly 
excommunicated.  Inns  were  to  receive  no  guests, 
schools  no  children,  almshouses  no  paupers,  graveyards 
no  dead  bodies,  unless  guests,  children,  paupers,  and 
dead  bodies  were  furnished  with  the  most  satisfactory 
proofs  of  orthodoxy.  Midwives  of  unsuspected  Roman- 
ism were  alone  to  exercise  their  functions,  and  were 
bound  to  give  notice  within  twenty-four  hours  of  every 
birth  which  occurred ;  the  parish  clerks  were  as  regularly 
to  record  every  such  addition  to  the  population,  and  the 
authorities  to  see  that  Catholic  baptism  was  administered 
in  each  case  with  the  least  possible  delay.     Births,  deaths, 

1  Papiers  d'£tat,  vi.  518. 


1564]       ORDER  FOR  PUBLICATION  OF  DECREES  97 

and  marriages  could  only  occur  with  validity  under  the 
shadow  of  the  Church.  No  human  being  could  consider 
himself  born  or  defunct  unless  provided  with  a  priest's 
certificate.  The  heretic  was  excluded,  so  far  as  eccle- 
siastical dogma  could  exclude  him,  from  the  pale  of 
humanity,  from  consecrated  earth,  and  from  eternal 
salvation. 

The  decrees  contained  many  provisions  which  not 
only  conflicted  with  the  privileges  of  the  provinces^  but 
with  the  prerogatives  of  the  sovereign.  For  this  reason 
many  of  the  lords  in  council  thought  that  at  least  the 
proper  exceptions  should  be  made  upon  their  promulga- 
tion. This  was  also  the  opinion  of  the  duchess ;  but  the 
king,  by  his  letters  of  October  and  November  (1564), 
expressly  prohibited  any  alteration  in  the  ordinances, 
and  transmitted  a  copy  of  the  form  according  to  which 
the  canons  had  been  published  in  Spain,  together  with 
the  expression  of  his  desire  that  a  similar  course  should 
be  followed  in  the  Netherlands.^  Margaret  of  Parma 
was  in  great  embarrassment.  It  was  evident  that  the 
publication  could  no  longer  be  deferred.  Philip  had 
issued  his  commands,  but  grave  senators  and  learned 
doctors  of  the  university  had  advised  strongly  in  favor 
of  the  necessary  exceptions.  The  extreme  party,  headed 
by  Viglius,  were  in  favor  of  carrying  out  the  royal  de- 
cisions. They  were  overruled,  and  the  duchess  was 
induced  to  attempt  a  modification  if  her  brother's  per- 
mission could  be  obtained.  The  president  expressed 
the  opinion  that  the  decrees,  even  with  the  restrictions 
proposed,  would  ^'give  no  contentment  to  the  people, 
who,  moreover,  had  no  right  to  meddle  with  theology."  ^ 

1  Strada,  iv.  148. 

2  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  321. 
VOL.  II.— 7 


98  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1564 

The  excellent  Viglius  forgot,  however,  that  theology  had 
been  meddling  altogether  too  much  with  the  people  to 
make  it  possible  that  the  public  attention  should  be 
entirely  averted  from  the  subject.  Men  and  women 
who  might  be  daily  summoned  to  rack,  stake,  and  scaf- 
fold, in  the  course  of  these  ecclesiastical  arrangements, 
and  whose  births,  deaths,  marriages,  and  position  in  the 
next  world  were  now  to  be  formally  decided  upon,  could 
hardly  be  taxed  with  extreme  indiscretion  if  they  did 
meddle  with  the  subject. 

In  the  dilemma  to  which  the  duchess  was  reduced, 
she  again  bethought  herself  of  a  special  mission  to  Spain. 
At  the  end  of  the  year  (1564)  it  was  determined  that 
Egmont  should  be  the  envoy.  Montigny  excused  him- 
self on  account  of  private  affairs;  Marquis  Berghen, 
"  because  of  his  indisposition  and  corpulence."  ^  There 
was  a  stormy  debate  in  council  after  Egmont  had  ac- 
cepted the  mission  and  immediately  before  his  depar- 
ture. Viglius  had  been  ordered  to  prepare  the  count's 
instructions.  Having  finished  the  rough  draft,  he  laid 
it  before  the  board.^  The  paper  was  conceived  in  gen- 
eral terms,  and  might  mean  anything  or  nothing.  No 
criticism  upon  its  language  was,  however,  offered  until 
it  came  to  the  turn  of  Orange  to  vote  upon  the  docu- 
ment. Then,  however,  William  the  Silent  opened  his 
lips,  and  poured  forth  a  long  and  vehement  discourse, 
such  as  he  rarely  pronounced,  but  such  as  few  except 
himself  could  utter.  There  was  no  shuffling,  no  disguise, 
no  timidity  in  his  language.  He  took  the  ground  boldly 
that  the  time  had  arrived  for  speaking  out.  The  object 
of  sending  an  envoy  of  high  rank  and  European  repu- 
tation like  the  Count  of  Egmont  was  to  tell  the  king 
1  Papiers  d'Etat,  \iii.  615.  2  Vit.  Viglii,  41. 


1564]  SPEECH  OF  ORANGE  99 

the  truth.  Let  Philip  know  it  now.  Let  him  be  unequiv- 
ocally informed  that  this  whole  machinery  of  placards 
and  scaffolds,  of  new  bishops  and  old  hangmen,  of  decrees, 
inquisitors,  and  informers,  must  once  and  forever  be 
abolished.  Their  day  was  over.  The  Netherlands  were 
free  provinces,  they  were  surrounded  by  free  countries, 
they  were  determined  to  vindicate  their  ancient  privi- 
leges. Moreover,  his  Majesty  was  to  be  plainly  informed 
of  the  frightful  corruption  which  made  the  whole  judi- 
cial and  administrative  system  loathsome.  The  venality 
which  notoriously  existed  everywhere— on  the  bench,  in 
the  council-chamber,  in  all  public  offices,  where  purity 
was  most  essential— was  denounced  by  the  prince  in 
scathing  terms.  He  tore  the  mask  from  individual  faces, 
and  openly  charged  the  chancellor  of  Brabant,  Engel- 
bert  Maas,  with  knavery  and  corruption.  He  insisted 
that  the  king  should  be  informed  of  the  necessity  of 
abolishing  the  two  inferior  councils,  and  of  enlarging 
the  council  of  state  by  the  admission  of  ten  or  twelve 
new  members  selected  for  their  patriotism,  purity,  and 
capacit}^  Above  all,  it  was  necessary  plainly  to  inform 
his  Majesty  that  the  canons  of  Trent,  spurned  by  the 
whole  world,  even  by  the  Catholic  princes  of  Germany, 
could  never  be  enforced  in  the  Netherlands,  and  that  it 
would  be  ruinous  to  make  the  attempt.  He  proposed 
and  insisted  that  the  Count  of  Egmont  should  be  in- 
structed accordingly.  He  avowed  in  conclusion  that 
he  was  a  Catholic  himself  and  intended  to  remain  in 
the  faith,  but  that  he  could  not  look  on  with  pleasure 
when  princes  strove  to  govern  the  souls  of  men  and  to 
take  away  their  liberty  in  matters  of  conscience  and 
religion.^ 

1  Vit.  Viglii,  41,  42. 


100  THE  EISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1564 

Here  certainly  was  no  daintiness  of  phraseology,  and 
upon  these  leading  points,  thus  slightly  indicated,  Wil- 
liam of  Orange  poured  out  his  eloquence,  bearing  con- 
viction upon  the  tide  of  his  rapid  invective.  His  speech 
lasted  till  seven  in  the  evening,  when  the  duchess 
adjourned  the  meeting.  The  council  broke  up,  the 
regent  went  to  supper,  but  the  effect  of  the  discourse 
upon  nearly  all  the  members  was  not  to  be  mistaken. 
Viglius  was  in  a  state  of  consternation,  perplexity,  and 
despair.  He  felt  satisfied  that,  with  perhaps  the  excep- 
tion of  Berlaymont,  all  who  had  listened  or  should 
afterward  listen  to  the  powerful  arguments  of  Orange 
would  be  inevitably  seduced  or  bewildered.  The  presi- 
dent lay  awake,  tossing  and  tumbling  in  his  bed,  recalling 
the  prince's  oration  point  by  point,  and  endeavoring  to 
answer  it  in  order.  It  was  important,  he  felt,  to  ob- 
literate the  impression  produced.  Moreover,  as  we  have 
often  seen,  the  learned  doctor  valued  himself  upon  his 
logic.  It  was  absolutely  necessary,  therefore,  that  in  his 
reply,  next  day,  his  eloquence  should  outshine  that  of 
his  antagonist.  The  president  thus,  passed  a  feverish 
and  uncomfortable  night,  pronouncing  and  listening  to 
imaginary  harangues.  With  the  dawn  of  day  he  arose 
and  proceeded  to  dress  himself.  The  excitement  of  the 
previous  evening  and  the  subsequent  sleeplessness  of 
his  night  had,  however,  been  too  much  for  his  feeble  and 
slightly  superannuated  frame.  Before  he  had  finished 
his  toilet  a  stroke  of  apoplexy  stretched  him  senseless 
upon  the  floor.  His  servants,  when  they  soon  afterward 
entered  the  apartment,  found  him  rigid  and  to  all  ap- 
pearance dead.i  After  a  few  days,  however,  he  recovered 
his  physical  senses  in  part,  but  his  reason  remained  for 

1  Vit.  Viglii,  42. 


1564]  JOACHIM  HOPPER  101 

a  longer  time  shattered,  and  was  never  perhaps  fully- 
restored  to  its  original  vigor. 

This  event  made  it  necessary  that  his  place  in  the 
council  should  be  supplied.  Viglius  had  frequently  ex- 
pressed intentions  of  retiring,  a  measure  to  which  he 
could  yet  never  fully  make  up  his  mind.  His  place  was 
now  temporarily  supplied  by  his  friend  and  countryman, 
Joachim  Hopper,  like  himself  a  Frisian  doctor  of  ancient 
blood  and  extensive  acquirements,  well  versed  in  philos- 
ophy and  jurisprudence,  a  professor  of  Louvain  and 
a  member  of  the  Mechlin  council.  He  was  likewise  the 
original  founder  and  projector  of  Douai  University,  an 
institution  which  at  Philip's  desire  he  had  successfully 
organized  in  1556,  in  order  that  a  French  university 
might  be  furnished  for  Walloon  youths,  as  a  substitute 
for  the  seductive  and  poisonous  Paris.  For  the  rest. 
Hopper  was  a  mere  man  of  routine.  He  was  often 
employed  in  private  affairs  by  Philip,  without  being 
intrusted  with  the  secret  at  the  bottom  of  them.  His 
mind  was  a  confused  one,  and  his  style  inexpressibly 
involved  and  tedious.  "Poor  Master  Hopper,"  said 
Granvelle,  "  did  not  write  the  best  French  in  the  world ; 
may  the  Lord  forgive  him.  He  was  learned  in  letters, 
but  knew  very  little  of  great  affairs."  His  manners 
were  as  cringing  as  his  intellect  was  narrow.  He  never 
opposed  the  duchess,  so  that  his  colleagues  always  called 
him  Councilor  "Yes,  Madam,"  and  he  did  his  best  to  be 
friends  with  all  the  world.^ 

In  deference  to  the  arguments  of  Orange,  the  instruc- 
tions for  Egmont  were  accordingly  considerably  modified 
from  the  original  draft  of  Viglius.     As  drawn  up  by 

1  Vit.  Viglii,  42.  Levensb.  Nederl.  Man.  en  Vrouwen,  iv. 
105-111.     Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  v.  373.     Dom  I'Evesque,  i.  91. 


102  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

the  new  president,  they  contained  at  least  a  few  hints  to 
his  Majesty  as  to  the  propriety  of  mitigating  the  edicts 
and  extending  some  mercy  to  his  suffering  people.^  The 
document  was,  however,  not  very  satisfactory  to  the 
prince,  nor  did  he  perhaps  rely  very  implicitly  upon 
the  character  of  the  envoy. 

Egmont  set  forth  upon  his  journey  early  in  January 
(1565).  He  traveled  in  great  state.  He  was  escorted  as 
far  as  Cambray  by  several  nobles  of  his  acquaintance, 
who  improved  the  occasion  by  a  series  of  tremendous  ban- 
quets dui'ing  the  count's  sojourn,  which  was  protracted 
till  the  end  of  January.  The  most  noted  of  these  gentle- 
men were  Hoogstraaten,  Brederode,  the  younger  Mans- 
feld,  Culemburg,  and  Noircarmes.  Before  they  parted 
with  the  envoy  they  drew  up  a  paper  which  they  signed 
with  their  blood,  and  afterward  placed  in  the  hands  of 
his  countess.  In  this  document  they  promised,  on  ac- 
count of  their  "inexpressible  and  very  singular  affec- 
tion "  for  Egmont,  that  if,  during  his  mission  to  Spain, 
any  evil  should  befall  him,  they  would,  on  their  faith  as 
gentlemen  and  cavaliers  of  honor,  take  vengeance  there- 
for upon  the  Cardinal  Grranvelle,  or  upon  all  who  should 
be  the  instigators  thereof.^ 

Wherever  Brederode  was,  there,  it  was  probable, 
would  be  much  severe  carousing.  Before  the  conclu- 
sion, accordingly,  of  the  visit  to  Cambray,  that  ancient 
city  rang  with  the  scandal  created  by  a  most  uproarious 

1  Vit.  Viglii,  42. 

2  Groen  v.  P.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  345,  from  Amoldi,  Hist. 
Denkwiird.,  p.  282.  It  is  remarkable  that,  after  the  return  of  the 
coimt  from  Spain,  Hoogstraaten  received  this  singular  bond  from 
the  countess,  and  gave  it  to  Mansfeld,  to  be  burned  in  his  presence. 
Mansfeld,  however,  advised  keeping  it,  on  account  of  Noircannes, 


1565]  SCENE  AT  CAMBRAY  103 

scene.  A  banquet  was  given  to  Egmont  and  his  friends 
in  the  citadel.  Brederode,  his  cousin  Lumey,  and  the 
other  nobles  from  Brussels  were  all  present.  The  Arch- 
bishop of  Cambray,  a  man  very  odious  to  the  liberal 
party  in  the  provinces,  was  also  bidden  to  the  feast. 
During  the  dinner,  this  prelate,  although  treated  with 
marked  respect  by  Egmont,  was  the  object  of  much 
banter  and  coarse  pleasantry  by  the  ruder  portion  of  the 
guests.  Especially  these  convivial  gentlemen  took  in- 
finite pains  to  overload  him  with  challenges  to  huge 
bumpers  of  wine,  it  being  thought  very  desirable,  if 
possible,  to  place  the  archbishop  under  the  table.  This 
pleasantry  was  alternated  with  much  rude  sarcasm  con- 
cerning the  new  bishoprics.  The  conversation  then  fell 
upon  other  topics,  among  others  naturally  upon  the 
mission  of  Count  Egmont.  Brederode  observed  that  it 
was  a  very  hazardous  matter  to  allow  so  eminent  a  per- 
sonage to  leave  the  land  at  such  a  critical  period.  Should 
anything  happen  to  the  count,  the  Netherlands  would 
sustain  an  immense  loss.  The  archbishop,  irritated 
by  the  previous  conversation,  ironically  requested  the 
speaker  to  be  comforted,  "because,"  said  he,  '4t  will 
always  be  easy  to  find  a  new  Egmont."  Upon  this, 
Brederode,  beside  himself  with  rage,  cried  out  vehe- 
mently, "Are  we  to  tolerate  such  language  from  this 
priest  ? "    Culemburg,  too,  turning  upon  the  offender,  ob- 

whose  signature  was  attached  to  the  document,  and  whom  he  knew 
to  be  so  false  and  deeeitfid  a  man  that  it  might  be  well  to  have  it 
within  their  power  at  some  future  day  to  reproach  him  therewith. 
(Ibid. )  It  will  be  seen  in  the  sequel  that  Noircarmes  more  than 
justified  the  opinion  of  Mansfeld,  but  that  the  siibsequent  career 
of  Mansfeld  himself  did  not  entitle  him  to  reproach  any  of  Philip's 
noble  hangmen. 


104  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1565 

served :  "  Your  observation  would  be  much  more  appli- 
cable to  your  own  case.  If  you  were  to  die,  't  would  be 
easy  to  find  five  hundred  of  your  merit  to  replace  you 
in  the  see  of  Cambray."  The  conversation  was,  to  say 
the  least,  becoming  personal.  The  bishop,  desirous  of 
terminating  this  keen  encounter  of  wits,  lifted  a  goblet 
full  of  wine  and  challenged  Brederode  to  drink.  That 
gentleman  declined  the  invitation.  After  the  cloth  had 
been  removed,  the  cup  circulated  more  freely  than  ever. 
The  revelry  became  fast  and  furious.  One  of  the  younger 
gentlemen  who  was  seated  near  the  bishop  snatched  the 
bonnet  of  that  dignitary  from  his  head  and  placed  it 
upon  his  own.  He  then  drained  a  bumper  to  his  health, 
and  passed  the  goblet  and  the  cap  to  his  next  neighbor. 
Both  circulated  till  they  reached  the  Viscount  of  Ghent, 
who  arose  from  his  seat  and  respectfully  restored  the 
cap  to  its  owner.  Brederode  then  took  a  large  ''  cup  of 
silver  and  gold,"  filled  it  to  the  brim,  and  drained  it  to 
the  confusion  of  Cardinal  Granvelle,  stigmatizing  that 
departed  minister,  as  he  finished,  by  an  epithet  of  more 
vigor  than  decency.  He  then  called  upon  all  the  com- 
pany to  pledge  him  to  the  same  toast,  and  denounced  as 
cardinaKsts  all  those  who  should  refuse.  The  arch- 
bishop, not  having  digested  the  affronts  which  had  been 
put  upon  him  already,  imprudently  ventured  himself 
once  more  into  the  confusion,  and  tried  to  appeal  to  the 
reason  of  the  company.  He  might  as  well  have  addressed 
the  crew  of  Comus.  He  gained  nothing  but  additional 
insult.  Brederode  advanced  upon  him  with  threatening 
gestures.  Egmont  implored  the  prelate  to  retii'e,  or  at 
least  not  to  take  notice  of  a  nobleman  so  obviously  be- 
yond the  control  of  his  reason.  The  bishop,  however, 
insisted— mingling  reproof,  menace,  and  somewhat  im- 


1565]  SCENE  AT   CAMBRAY  105 

perious  demands— that  the  indecent  Saturnalia  should 
cease.  It  would  have  been  wiser  for  him  to  retire. 
Count  Hoogstraaten,  a  young  man  and  small  of  stature, 
seized  the  gilt  laver  in  which  the  company  had  dipped 
their  fingers  before  seating  themselves  at  table.  "Be 
quiet,  be  quiet,  little  man,"  said  Egmont,  soothingly, 
doing  his  best  to  restrain  the  tumult.  ''Little  man, 
indeed  !  "  responded  the  count,  wrathfully.  ''  I  would 
have  you  to  know  that  never  did  little  man  spring  from 
my  race."  "With  those  words  he  hurled  the  basin,  water 
and  all,  at  the  head  of  the  archbishop.  Hoogstraaten 
had  no  doubt  manifested  his  bravery  before  that  day ; 
he  was  to  display  on  future  occasions  a  very  remarkable 
degree  of  heroism ;  but  it  must  be  confessed  that  the 
chivalry  of  the  noble  house  of  Lalain  was  not  illustrated 
by  this  attack  upon  a  priest.  The  bishop  was  sprinkled 
by  the  water,  but  not  struck  by  the  vessel.  Young 
Mansfeld,  ashamed  of  the  outrage,  stepped  forward  to 
apologize  for  the  conduct  of  his  companions  and  to 
soothe  the  insulted  prelate.  That  personage,  however, 
exasperated,  very  naturally,  to  the  highest  point,  pushed 
him  rudely  away,  crying, ''  Begone,  begone  !  Who  is  this 
boy  that  is  preaching  to  me  ? "  Whereupon  Mansfeld, 
much  irritated,  lifted  his  hand  toward  the  ecclesiastic 
and  snapped  his  fingers  contemptuously  in  his  face. 
Some  even  said  that  he  pulled  the  archiepiscopal  nose, 
others  that  he  threatened  his  life  with  a  drawn  dagger. 
Nothing  could  well  have  been  more  indecent  or  more 
cowardly  than  the  conduct  of  these  nobles  upon  this 
occasion.  Their  intoxication,  together  with  the  character 
of  the  victim,  explained,  but  certainly  could  not  palliate, 
the  vulgarity  of  the  exhibition.  It  was  natural  enough 
that  men  like  Brederode  should  find  sport  in  this  remark- 


106  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1565 

able  badgering  of  a  bishop,  but  we  see  with  regret  the 
part  played  by  Hoogstraaten  in  the  disgraceful  scene. 

The  prelate,  at  last,  exclaiming  that  it  appeared  that 
he  had  been  invited  only  to  be  insulted,  left  the  apart- 
ment, accompanied  by  Noircarmes  and  the  Viscount  of 
Ghent,  and  threatening  that  all  his  friends  and  relations 
should  be  charged  with  his  vengeance.  The  next  day  a 
reconciliation  was  effected,  as  well  as  such  an  arrange- 
ment was  possible,  by  the  efforts  of  Egmont,  who  dined 
alone  with  the  prelate.  In  the  evening,  Hoogstraaten, 
Culemburg,  and  Brederode  called  upon  the  bishop,  with 
whom  they  were  closeted  for  an  hour,  and  the  party 
separated  on  nominal  terms  of  friendship.^ 

This  scandalous  scene,  which  had  been  enacted  not 
only  before  many  guests,  but  in  presence  of  a  host  of 
servants,  made  necessarily  a  great  sensation  throughout 
the  country.  There  could  hardly  be  much  difference  of 
opinion  among  respectable  people  as  to  the  conduct  of 
the  noblemen  who  had  thus  disgraced  themselves.  Even 
Brederode  himself,  who  appeared  to  have  retained,  as 
was  natural,  but  a  confused  impression  of  the  transac- 
tion, seemed,  in  the  days  which  succeeded  the  celebrated 
banquet,  to  be  in  doubt  whether  he  and  his  friends 
had  merited  any  great  amount  of  applause.  He  was, 
however,  somewhat  self-contradictory,  although  always 
vehement  in  his  assertions  on  the  subject.  At  one  time 
he  maintained— after  dinner,  of  course— that  he  would 
have  killed  the  archbishop  if  they  had  not  been  forcibly 
separated ;  at  other  moments  he  denounced  as  liars  all 
persons  who  should  insinuate  that  he  had  committed  or 
contemplated  any  injury  to  that  prelate,  offering  freely 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  Papiers  d'etat,  viii.  681-688 ;  ix.  16, 17. 
Van  der  Haer,  279-283. 


1565]  CHARACTER  OF  THE  ARCHBISHOP  107 

to  fight  any  man  who  disputed  either  of  his  two  posi- 
tions.i 

The  whole  scene  was  dramatized  and  represented  in 
masquerade  at  a  wedding-festival  given  by  Councilor 
d'Assonleville  on  the  marriage  of  Councilor  Hopper's 
daughter,  one  of  the  principal  parts  being  enacted  by  a 
son  of  the  president- judge  of  Artois.^  It  may  be  sup- 
posed that  if  such  eminent  personages,  in  close  connection 
with  the  government,  took  part  in  such  proceedings,  the 
riot  must  have  been  considered  of  a  very  pardonable 
nature.  The  truth  was  that  the  bishop  was  a  cardinal- 
ist,  and  therefore  entirely  out  of  favor  with  the  adminis- 
tration. He  was  also  a  man  of  treacherous,  sanguinary 
character,  and  consequently  detested  by  the  people.  He 
had  done  his  best  to  destroy  heresy  in  Valenciennes  by 
fire  and  sword.  "I  will  say  one  thing,"  said  he  in  a 
letter  to  Granvelle,  which  had  been  intercepted :  '^  since 
the  pot  is  uncovered  and  the  whole  cookery  known,  we 
had  best  push  forward  and  make  an  end  of  all  the  prin- 
cipal heretics,  whether  rich  or  poor,  ivithout  regarding 
whether  the  city  will  he  entirely  ruined  by  such  a  course. 
Such  an  opinion  I  should  declare  openly  were  it  not  that 
we  of  the  ecclesiastical  profession  are  accused  of  always 
crying  out  for  blood."  ^  Such  was  the  prelate's  theory. 
His  practice  may  be  inferred  from  a  specimen  of  his  pro- 
ceedings which  occurred  at  a  little  later  day.  A  citizen 
of  Cambray,  having  been  converted  to  the  Lutheran  con- 
fession, went  to  the  archbishop  and  requested  permis- 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  16,  17. 

2  Ibid.,  ix.  17.  Pierre  Arset,  president  of  Artois,  was  after- 
ward a  member  of  that  infamous  tribunal  called  the  Council  of 
Troubles,  and  popularly  "  of  Blood." 

3  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  180,  181. 


108  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

sion  to  move  out  of  the  country,  taking  his  property 
with  him.  The  petitioner,  having  made  his  appearance 
in  the  forenoon,  was  requested  to  call  again  after  dinner 
to  receive  his  answer.  The  burgher  did  so,  and  was  re- 
ceived, not  by  the  prelate,  but  b}''  the  executioner,  who 
immediately  carried  the  Lutheran  to  the  market-place 
and  cut  off  his  head.^  It  is  sufficiently  evident  that  a 
minister  of  Christ  with  such  propensities  could  not 
excite  any  great  sympathy,  however  deeply  affronted  he 
might  have  been  at  a  drinking-party,  so  long  as  any 
Christians  remained  in  the  land. 

Egmont  departed  from  Cambray  upon  the  30th  Janu- 
ary, his  friends  taking  a  most  affectionate  farewell  of  him, 
and  Brederode  assuring  him,  with  a  thousand  oaths,  that 
he  would  forsake  God  for  his  service.^  His  reception  at 
Madrid  was  most  brilliant.  When  he  made  his  first 
appearance  at  the  palace,  Philip  rushed  from  his  cabinet 
into  the  grand  hall  of  reception,  and  fell  upon  his  neck, 
embracing  him  heartily  before  the  count  had  time  to 
drop  upon  his  knee  and  kiss  the  royal  hand.^  During 
the  whole  period  of  his  visit  he  dined  frequently  at  the 
king's  private  table,  an  honor  rarely  accorded  by  Philip, 
and  was  feasted  and  flattered  by  all  the  great  dignitaries 
of  the  court  as  never  a  subject  of  the  Spanish  crown  had 
been  before.  All  vied  with  each  other  in  heaping  honors 
upon  the  man  whom  the  king  was  determined  to  honor.^ 
PhOip  took  him  out  to  drive  daily  in  his  own  coach,  sent 
him  to  see  the  wonders  of  the  new  Eseorial,  which  he  was 
building  to  commemorate  the  battle  of  St.-Quentin,  and, 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  458,  459.  Letter  from 
William  of  Orange  to  Landgrave  William  of  Hesse. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  16,  17. 

3  Pontus  Payen  MS.  <  Ibid. 


1565]  EGMONT  IN  SPAIN  109 

although  it  was  still  winter,  insisted  upon  showing  him 
the  beauties  of  his  retreat  in  the  Segovian  forest.^  Gran- 
velle's  counsels  as  to  the  method  by  which  the  "  friend 
of  smoke"  was  so  easily  to  be  gained  had  not  fallen 
unheeded  in  his  royal  pupil's  ears.  The  count  was  lodged 
in  the  house  of  Ruy  Gomez,  who  soon  felt  himself  able, 
according  to  previous  assurances  to  that  effect  contained 
in  a  private  letter  of  Armenteros,  to  persuade  the  envoy 
to  any  course  which  Philip  might  command.^  Flattery 
without  stint  was  administered.  More  solid  arguments 
to  convince  the  count  that  Philip  was  the  most  generous 
and  clement  of  princes  were  also  employed  with  great 
effect.  The  royal  dues  upon  the  estate  of  Gaasbecque, 
lately  purchased  by  Egmont,  were  remitted.^  A  mort- 
gage upon  his  seigniory  of  Ninove*  was  discharged, 
and  a  considerable  sum  of  money  presented  to  him  in 
addition.  Altogether,  the  gifts  which  the  ambassador 
received  from  the  royal  bounty  amounted  to  one  hundred 
thousand  crowns.^  Thus  feasted,  flattered,  and  laden 
with  presents,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  count  more 
than  justified  the  opinions  expressed  in  the  letter  of 
Armenteros  that  he  was  a  man  easily  governed  by  those 
who  had  credit  with  him.  Egmont  hardly  broached  the 
public  matters  which  had  brought  him  to  Madrid.  Upon 
the  subject  of  the  edicts  Philip  certainly  did  not  dis- 
semble, however  loudly  the  envoy  may  have  afterward 
complained  at  Brussels.  In  truth,  Egmont,  intoxicated 
by  the  incense  offered  to  him  at  the  Spanish  court,  was 

1  Correspondance  de  PMlippe  II.,  i.  349. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  343,  344. 

3  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

*  Correspondance  de  Philippe  IT.,  i.  347,  348. 
5  Papiers  d'fitat,  ix.  385. 


110  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1565 

a  different  man  from  Egmont  in  the  Netherlands,  subject 
to  the  calm  but  piercing  glance  and  the  irresistible  con- 
trol of  Orange.  Philip  gave  him  no  reason  to  suppose 
that  he  intended  any  change  in  the  religious  system  of 
the  provinces,  at  least  in  any  sense  contemplated  by  the 
liberal  party.  On  the  contrary,  a  council  of  doctors  and 
ecclesiastics  was  summoned,^  at  whose  deliberations  the 
count  was  invited  to  assist,  on  which  occasion  the  king 
excited  general  admiration  by  the  fervor  of  his  piety  and 
the  vehemence  of  his  ejaculations.  Falling  upon  his 
knees  before  a  crucifix,  in  the  midst  of  the  assembly,  he 
prayed  that  God  would  keep  him  perpetually  in  the  same 
mind,  and  protested  that  he  would  never  call  himself 
master  of  those  who  denied  the  Lord  God.^  Such  an 
exhibition  could  leave  but  little  doubt  in  the  minds  of 
those  who  witnessed  it  as  to  the  royal  sentiments,  nor 
did  Egmont  make  any  effort  to  obtain  any  relaxation  of 
those  religious  edicts  which  he  had  himself  declared 
worthy  of  approbation  and  fit  to  be  maintained.^  As 
to  the  question  of  enlarging  the  state  council,  Philip 
dismissed  the  subject  with  a  few  vague  observations, 
which  Egmont,  not  very  zealous  on  the  subject  at  the 
moment,  perhaps  misunderstood.  The  punishment  of 
heretics  by  some  new  method,  so  as  to  secure  the  pains 
but  to  take  away  the  glories  of  martyrdom,  was  also 
slightly  discussed,  and  here  again  Egmont  was  so  un- 
fortunate as  to  misconceive  the  royal  meaning,  and  to 
interpret  an  additional  refinement  of  cruelty  into  an 
expression  of  clemency.  On  the  whole,  however,  there 
was  not  much  negotiation  between  the  monarch  and  the 
ambassador.     When  the  count  spoke  of  business,  the  king 

1  Strada,  iv.  152. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  217.  3  jbid. 


1565]  FLATTERY  HI 

would  speak  to  him  of  his  daughters,  and  of  his  desire 
to  see  them  provided  with  brilliant  marriages.^  As 
Egmont  had  eight  girls,  besides  two  sons,  it  was  natural 
that  he  should  be  pleased  to  find  Philip  taking  so  much 
interest  in  looking  out  husbands  for  them.  The  king 
spoke  to  him,  as  hardly  could  be  avoided,  of  the  famous 
fool's-cap  livery.  The  count  laughed  the  matter  off  as 
a  jest,  protesting  that  it  was  a  mere  foolish  freak,  origi- 
nating at  the  wine-table,  and  asseverating  with  warmth 
that  nothing  disrespectful  or  disloyal  to  his  Majesty  had 
been  contemplated  upon  that  or  upon  any  other  occa- 
sion. Had  a  single  gentleman  uttered  an  undutif  ul  word 
against  the  king,  Egmont  vowed  he  would  have  stabbed 
him  through  and  through  upon  the  spot,  had  he  been  his 
own  brother.^  These  warm  protestations  were  answered 
by  a  gentle  reprimand  as  to  the  past  by  Philip,  and  with 
a  firm  caution  as  to  the  future.  ''  Let  it  be  discontinued 
entirely,  count,"  said  the  king,  as  the  two  were  driving 
together  in  the  royal  carriage.^  Egmont  expressed 
himself  in  handsome  terms  concerning  the  cardinal,*  in 
return  for  the  wholesale  approbation  quoted  to  him  in 
regard  to  his  own  character  from  the  private  letters  of 
that  sagacious  personage  to  his  Majesty.  Certainly,  after 
all  this,  the  count  might  suppose  the  affair  of  the  livery 
forgiven.  Thus  amicably  passed  the  hours  of  that  mis- 
sion, the  preliminaries  for  which  had  called  forth  so  much 
eloquence  from  the  Prince  of  Orange  and  so  nearly  car- 
ried off  with  apoplexy  the  President  Viglius.  On  his 
departure  Egmont  received  a  letter  of  instructions  from 

1  Bentivoglio,  ii.  24. 

2  Strada,  iv.  153. 

3  "Conde,  no  se  haga  mas."— Papiers  d'fitat,  ix.  277; 
*  Ibid.,  ix.  565. 


112  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

Philip  as  to  the  report  which  he  was  to  make  upon  his 
arrival  in  Brussels  to  the  duchess.  After  many  things 
personally  flattering  to  himself,  the  envoy  was  directed 
to  represent  the  king  as  overwhelmed  with  incredible 
grief  at  hearing  the  progress  made  by  the  heretics,  but 
as  immutably  determined  to  permit  no  change  of  religion 
within  his  dominions,  even  were  he  to  die  a  thousand 
deaths  in  consequence.  The  king,  he  was  to  state,  re- 
quested the  duchess  forthwith  to  assemble  an  extraordi- 
nary session  of  the  council,  at  which  certain  bishops, 
theological  doctors,  and  very  orthodox  lawyers  were  to 
assist,  in  which,  under  pretense  of  discussing  the  Council 
of  Trent  matter,  it  was  to  be  considered  whether  there 
could  not  be  some  "  new  way  devised  for  executing  here- 
tics ;  not  indeed  one  by  which  any  deduction  should  be  made 
from  their  sufferings  (which  certainly  was  not  the  royal 
wish,  nor  likely  to  be  grateful  to  God  or  salutary  to 
religion),  but  by  which  all  hopes  of  glory— that  powerful 
incentive  to  their  impiety —might  be  precluded."  ^  With 
regard  to  any  suggested  alterations  in  the  council  of 
state  or  in  the  other  two  councils,  the  king  was  to  be 
represented  as  unwilling  to  form  any  decision  until  he 
should  hear  at  length  from  the  duchess  regent  upon  the 
subject. 

Certainly  here  was  a  suflBcient  amount  of  plain  speak- 
ing upon  one  great  subject,  and  very  little  encouragement 
with  regard  to  the  other.  Yet  Egmont,  who  immediately 
after  receiving  these  instructions  set  forth  upon  his 
return  to  the  Netherlands,  manifested  nothing  but  satis- 
faction. Philip  presented  to  him,  as  his  travehng  com- 
panion, the  young  Prince  Alexander  of  Parma,  then 

1  Strada,  iv.  153  sqq.  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  1.  347. 
Hopper,  Rec.  et  M^m.,  46. 


1565]  EGMONT'S  REPORT  113 

about  to  make  a  visit  to  his  mother  in  Brussels,  and 
recommended  the  youth,  afterward  destined  to  play  so 
prominent  a  part  in  Flemish  history,  to  his  peculiar 
care.i  Egmont  addressed  a  letter  to  the  king  from  Val- 
ladolid,  in  which  he  indulged  in  ecstasies  concerning  the 
Escorial  and  the  wood  of  Segovia,  and  declared  that  he 
was  returning  to  the  Netherlands  "the  most  contented 
man  in  the  world."  ^ 

He  reached  Brussels  at  the  end  of  April.  Upon  the 
5  th  of  May  he  appeared  before  the  council,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  give  an  account  of  his  interview  with  the  king, 
together  with  a  statement  of  the  royal  intentions  and 
opinions.  These  were  already  sufficiently  well  known. 
Letters  written  after  the  envoy's  departure  had  arrived 
before  him,  in  which,  while  in  the  main  presenting  the 
same  views  as  those  contained  in  the  instructions  to 
Egmont,  Philip  had  expressed  his  decided  prohibition  of 
the  project  to  enlarge  the  state  council  and  to  suppress 
the  authority  of  the  other  two.^  Nevertheless,  the  count 
made  his  report  according  to  the  brief  received  at  Madrid, 
and  assured  his  hearers  that  the  king  was  all  benignity, 
having  nothing  so  much  at  heart  as  the  temporal  and 
eternal  welfare  of  the  provinces.  The  siege  of  Malta, 
he  stated,  would  prevent  the  royal  visit  to  the  Nether- 
lands for  the  moment,  but  it  was  deferred  only  for  a 
brief  period.  To  remedy  the  deficiency  in  the  provincial 
exchequer,  large  remittances  would  be  made  immediately 
from  Spain.  To  provide  for  the  increasing  difficulties 
of  the  religious  question,  a  convocation  of  nine  learned 
and  saintly  personages  was  recommended,  who  should 

1  Strada,  iv.  155. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  349. 
2  Strada,  iv.  154. 

VOL.  II.— 8 


114  THE  EISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

devise  some  new  sclieme  by  which  the  objections  to  the 
present  system  of  chastising  heretics  might  be  obviated.^ 
It  is  hardly  necessary  to  state  that  so  meager  a  result 
to  the  mission  of  Egmont  was  not  likely  to  inspire  the 
hearts  of  Orange  and  his  adherents  with  much  confidence. 
No  immediate  explosion  of  resentment,  however,  oc- 
curred. The  general  aspect  for  a  few  days  was  peaceful. 
Egmont  manifested  much  contentment  with  the  recep- 
tion which  he  met  with  in  Spain,  and  described  the 
king's  friendly  dispositions  toward  the  leading  nobles 
in  lively  colors.  He  went  to  his  government  immediately 
after  his  return,  assembled  the  states  of  Artois  in  the 
city  of  Arras,  and  delivered  the  letters  sent  to  that  body 
by  the  king.  He  made  a  speech  on  this  occasion,^  in- 
forming the  estates  that  his  Majesty  had  given  orders 
that  the  edicts  of  the  emperor  were  to  be  enforced  to  the 
letter ;  adding  that  he  had  told  the  king  freely  his  own 
opinion  upon  the  subject,  in  order  to  dissuade  him  from 
that  which  others  were  warmly  urging.  He  described 
Phnip  as  the  most  liberal  and  debonair  of  princes,  his 
council  in  Spain  as  cruel  and  sanguinary.  Time  was  to 
show  whether  the  epithets  thus  applied  to  the  advisers 
were  not  more  applicable  to  the  monarch  than  the  eulo- 
gies thus  lavished  by  the  blind  and  predestined  victim. 
It  will  also  be  perceived  that  this  language  used  before 
the  estates  of  Artois  varied  materially  from  his  observa- 
tion to  the  Dowager  Duchess  of  Aerschot,  denouncing  as 
enemies  the  men  who  accused  him  of  having  requested  a 
moderation  of  the  edicts.  In  truth,  this  most  vacillating, 
confused,  and  unfortunate  of  men  perhaps  scarcely  com- 
prehended the  purport  of  his  recent  negotiations  in 

1  Hopper,  Eec.  et  M6m.,  44-47.    Hoofd,  ii.  50-52. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1565]  ORDERS  TO  CONTINUE  PERSECUTION  115 

Spain,  nor  perceived  the  drift  of  his  daily  remarks  at 
home.  He  was,  however,  somewhat  vainglorious  imme- 
diately after  his  return,  and  excessively  attentive  to 
business.  '^  He  talks  like  a  king,"  said  Morillon,  spite- 
fully, ''negotiates  night  and  day,  and  makes  all  bow 
before  him."  ^  His  house  was  more  thronged  with  peti- 
tioners, courtiers,  and  men  of  affairs  than  even  the 
palace  of  the  duchess.  He  avowed  frequently  that  he 
would  devote  his  life  and  his  fortune  to  the  accomplish- 
ment of  the  king's  commands,  and  declared  his  uncom- 
promising hostility  to  all  who  should  venture  to  oppose 
that  loyal  determination. 

It  was  but  a  very  short  time,  however,  before  a  total 
change  was  distinctly  perceptible  in  his  demeanor. 
These  halcyon  days  were  soon  fled.  The  arrival  of  fresh 
letters  from  Spain  gave  a  most  unequivocal  evidence  of 
the  royal  determination,  if,  indeed,  any  doubt  could  be 
rationally  entertained  before.  The  most  stringent  in- 
structions to  keep  the  whole  machinery  of  persecution 
constantly  at  work  were  transmitted  to  the  duchess,  and 
aroused  the  indignation  of  Orange  and  his  followers. 
They  avowed  that  they  could  no  longer  trust  the  royal 
word,  since,  so  soon  after  Egmont's  departiire,  the  king 
had  written  despatches  so  much  at  variance  with  his 
language  as  reported  by  the  envoy.  There  was  nothing, 
they  said,  clement  and  debonair  in  these  injunctions 
upon  gentlemen  of  their  position  and  sentiments  to  de- 
vote their  time  to  the  encouragement  of  hangmen  and 
inquisitors.  The  duchess  was  unable  to  pacify  the  nobles. 
Egmont  was  beside  himself  with  rage.  With  his  usual 
recklessness  and  wrath,  he  expressed  himself  at  more 
than  one  session  of  the  state  council  in  most  unmeasured 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  316. 


116  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

terms.  His  anger  had  been  more  inflamed  by  informa- 
tion whieb  he  had  received  from  the  second  son  of  Ber- 
laymont,  a  young  and  indiscreet  lad,  who  had  most 
unfortunately  communicated  many  secrets  which  he  had 
learned  from  his  father,  but  which  were  never  intended 
for  Egmont's  ear.^ 

Philip's  habitual  dissimulation  had  thus  produced 
much  unnecessary  perplexity.  It  was  his  custom  to 
carry  on  correspondence  through  the  aid  of  various 
secretaries,  and  it  was  his  invariable  practice  to  deceive 
them  all.  Those  who  were  upon  the  most  confidential 
terms  with  the  monarch  were  most  sure  to  be  duped 
upon  all  important  occasions.  It  has  been  seen  that 
even  the  astute  Granvelle  could  not  escape  this  common 
lot  of  all  who  believed  their  breasts  the  depositories  of 
the  royal  secrets.  Upon  this  occasion  Gonzalo  Perez 
and  Ruy  Gomez  complained  bitterly  that  they  had 
known  nothing  of  the  letters  which  had  recently  been 
despatched  from  Valladolid,  while  Tisnacq  and  Courte- 
ville  had  been  ignorant  of  the  communications  forwarded 
by  the  hands  of  Egmont.  They  avowed  that  the  king 
created  infinite  trouble  by  thus  treating  his  affairs  in 
one  way  with  one  set  of  councilors  and  in  an  opposite 
sense  with  the  others,  thus  dissembling  with  aU,  and 
added  that  Philip  was  now  much  astonished  at  the  dis- 
satisfaction created  in  the  provinces  by  the  discrepancy 
between  the  French  letters  brought  by  Egmont  and  the 
Spanish  letters  since  despatched  to  the  duchess.  As 
this  was  his  regular  manner  of  transacting  business,  not 
only  for  the  Netherlands,  but  for  all  his  dominions,  they 
were  of  opinion  that  such  confusion  and  dissatisfaction 
might  weU  be  expected.^ 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  1.  355,  356i      ^  Ibid.,  i.  358. 


1565]  CONFUSION  117 

After  all,  however,  notwithstanding  the  indignation 
of  Egmont,  it  must  be  confessed  that  he  had  been  an 
easy  dupe.  He  had  been  dazzled  by  royal  smiles,  in- 
toxicated by  court  incense,  contaminated  by  yet  baser 
bribes.  He  had  been  turned  from  the  path  of  honor  and 
the  companionship  of  the  wise  and  noble  to  do  the  work 
of  those  who  were  to  compass  his  destruction.  The 
Prince  of  Orange  reproached  him  to  his  face  with  having 
forgotten,  when  in  Spain,  to  represent  the  views  of  his 
associates  and  the  best  interests  of  the  country,  while  he 
had  well  remembered  his  own  private  objects  and  ac- 
cepted the  lavish  bounty  of  the  king.i  Egmont,  stung 
to  the  heart  by  the  reproof  from  one  whom  he  honored 
and  who  wished  him  well,  became  sad  and  somber  for  a 
long  time,  abstained  from  the  court  and  from  society, 
and  expressed  frequently  the  intention  of  retiring  to  his 
estates.^  He  was,  however,  much  governed  by  his  secre- 
tary, the  Seigneur  de  Bakkerzeel,^  a  man  of  restless,  in- 
triguing, and  deceitful  character,  who  at  this  period 
exercised  as  great  influence  over  the  count  as  Armen- 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  345 :  "II  y  a  este  parole  pieante  du 
P"^"  d'Orange  eontre  le  C*"  d'Egmont  eomme  s'il  n'auroit  rien  obli^ 
de  son  particulier;  mais  bien  de  ce  qui  coneernoit  des  seigneurs, 
dont  d'Egmont  at  este  aggravi^  et  ne  fust  jeudi  en  court  ny  en  la 
procession." —  Letter  of  Morillon  to  Granvelle,  of  date  22d  June, 
1565. 

"  Le  P'=®  d'Orange  ne  se  pouvoit  abstenir  .  .  .  d'user  des  mots 
picquants  eontre  le  C*"  d'Egmont  qu'il  n'avoit  fait  aultre  chose  en 
Espagne  que  remplir  sa  bourse,  et  que  les  50,000  pistolets  que  luy 
avoit  donne  le  Eoy  luy  avoyent  faict  oublier  les  causses  de  son 
voyage  et  charges  de  sa  legation."— Pontus  Payen  MS.  Compare 
Bentivoglio,  ii.  24,  25. 

2  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  386. 

'  Ibid.,  ix.  459,  Letter  of  Bave  to  Granvelle.  Correspondance 
de  Philippe  II.,  i.  365,  366,  Armenteros  to  G.  Perez. 


118  THE   RISE   OF   THE  DUTCH   REPUBLIC  [1565 

teros  continued  to  maintain  over  the  duchess,  whose 
unpopularity  from  that  and  other  circumstances  was 
daily  increasing.^ 

In  obedience  to  the  commands  of  the  king,  the  canons 
of  Trent  had  been  published.  They  were  nominally  en- 
forced at  Cambray,  but  a  fierce  opposition  was  made 
by  the  clergy  themselves  to  the  innovation  in  Mechlin, 
Utrecht,  and  many  other  places.  This  matter,  together 
with  other  more  vitally  important  questions,  came  be- 
fore the  assembly  of  bishops  and  doctors  which,  accord- 
ing to  Philip's  instructions,  had  been  convoked  by  the 
duchess.  The  opinion  of  the  learned  theologians  was, 
on  the  whole,  that  the  views  of  the  Trent  Council  with 
regard  to  reformation  of  ecclesiastical  morals  and  popu- 
lar education  were  sound.  There  was  some  discordancy 
between  the  clerical  and  lay  doctors  upon  other  points. 
The  seigniors,  lawyers,  and  deputies  from  the  estates 
were  all  in  favor  of  repealing  the  penalty  of  death  for  heret- 
ical offenses  of  any  kind.  President  Viglius,  with  all 
the  bishops  and  doctors  of  divinity,  including  the  prel- 
ates of  St.-Omer,  Namur,  and  Ypres,  and  four  theological 
professors  from  Louvain,  stoutly  maintained  the  contrary 
opinion?  The  president  especially  declared  himseK 
vehemently  in  favor  of  the  death  punishment,  and  ex- 
pressed much  anger  against  those  who  were  in  favor  of 
its  abolition.^  The  duchess,  upon  the  second  day  of  the 
assembly,  propounded  formally  the  question  whether 
any  change  was  to  be  made  in  the  chastisement  of  here- 
tics. The  Prince  of  Orange,  with  Counts  Horn  and 
Egmont,  had,  however,  declined  to  take  part  in  the  dis- 

1  Groen  V.  Prinst.,  Archives,  i.  425. 

2  Papiers  d'ifitat,  ix.  408. 

'  Ibid :  "  Y  respoudio  con  muclio  auimo  contra  un  tal  opinion." 


1565]  ORTHODOX  COUNCIL  119 

cussions,  on  the  ground  that  it  was  not  his  Majesty's 
intention  that  state  councilors  should  deliver  their  opin- 
ions before  strangers,  but  that  persons  from  outside 
had  been  summoned  to  communicate  their  advice  to  the 
council.^  The  seigniors  having  thus  washed  their  hands 
of  the  matter,  the  doctors  came  to  a  conclusion  with 
great  alacrity.  It  was  their  unanimous  opinion  that  it 
comported  neither  with  the  service  of  God  nor  the  com- 
monweal to  make  any  change  in  the  punishment,  ex- 
cept, perhaps,  in  the  case  of  extreme  youth,  but  that,  on 
the  contrary,  heretics  were  only  to  be  dealt  with  by  re- 
taining the  edicts  in  their  rigor  and  by  courageously 
chastising  the  criminals.^  After  sitting  for  the  greater 
part  of  six  days,  the  bishops  and  doctors  of  divinity 
reduced  their  sentiments  to  writing,  and  affixed  their 
signatures  to  the  document.  Upon  the  great  point  of 
the  change  suggested  in  the  penalties  of  heresy,  it  was 
declared  that  no  alteration  was  advisable  in  the  edicts, 
which  had  been  working  so  well  for  thirty-five  years.^ 
At  the  same  time  it  was  suggested  that  '^  some  persons, 
in  respect  to  their  age  and  quality,  might  be  executed  or 
punished  more  or  less  rigorously  than  others ;  some  by 
death,  some  by  galley-slavery,  some  by  perpetual  banish- 
ment and  entire  confiscation  of  property."  The  possi- 
bility was  also  admitted  of  mitigating  the  punishment 
of  those  who,  ivithout  being  heretics  or  sectaries,  might 
bring  themselves  within  the  provisions  of  the  edicts 
'' through  curiosity,  nonchalance,  or  otherwise."  Such 
offenders,  it  was  hinted,  might  be  "  whipped  with  rods, 
fined,  banished,  or  subjected  to  similar  penalties  of  a 
lighter  nature."*     It  will  be  perceived  by  this  slight 

1  Hopper,  Ree.  et  M6m.,  47. 

2  Ibid.,  48.  3  ibia.,  48,  49.  *  Ibid. 


120  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

sketch  of  the  advice  thus  offered  to  the  duchess  that 
these  theologians  were  disposed  very  carefully  to  strain 
the  mercy  which  they  imagined  possible  in  some  cases, 
but  which  was  to  drop  only  upon  the  heads  of  the  just. 
Heretics  were  still  to  be  dealt  with,  so  far  as  the  bishops 
and  presidents  could  affect  their  doom,  with  unmitigated 
rigor. 

When  the  assembly  was  over,  the  duchess,  thus  put  in 
possession  of  the  recorded  wisdom  of  these  special  coun- 
cilors, asked  her  constitutional  advisers  what  she  was 
to  do  with  it.  Orange,  Egmont,  Horn,  Mansfeld  replied, 
however,  that  it  was  not  their  affair,  and  that  their 
opinion  had  not  been  demanded  by  his  Majesty  in  the 
premises.!  The  duchess  accordingly  transmitted  to 
Philip  the  conclusions  of  the  assembly,  together  with 
the  reasons  of  the  seigniors  for  refusing  to  take  part 
in  its  deliberations.  The  sentiments  of  Orange  could 
hardly  be  doubtful,  however,  nor  his  silence  fail  to  give 
offense  to  the  higher  powers.  He  contented  himself  for 
the  time  with  keeping  his  eyes  and  ears  open  to  the 
course  of  events,  but  he  watched  well.  He  had  "little 
leisure  for  amusing  himself,"  as  Brederode  suggested. 
That  free-spoken  individual  looked  upon  the  proceedings 
of  the  theological  assembly  with  profound  disgust, 
"Your  letter,"  he  wrote  to  Count  Louis,  "is  full  of 
those  blackguards  of  bishops  and  presidents.  I  would 
the  race  were  extinct,  like  that  of  green  dogs.  They 
will  always  combat  with  the  arms  which  they  have  ever 
used,  remaining  to  the  end  avaricious,  brutal,  obstinate, 
ambitious,  et  cetera.     I  leave  you  to  supply  the  rest."  ^ 

Thus,  then,  it  was  settled  beyond  peradventure  that 

1  Hopper,  Rec.  et  M4m.,  48,  49. 

2  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  382. 


1565]  THE  DIE  CAST;  121 

there  was  to  be  no  compromise  with  heresy.  The  king 
had  willed  it.  The  theologians  had  advised  it.  The 
duchess  had  proclaimed  it.  It  was  supposed  that  with- 
out the  ax,  the  fire,  and  the  rack  the  Catholic  religion 
Avould  be  extinguished,  and  that  the  whole  population 
of  the  Netherlands  would  embrace  the  Reformed  faith. 
This  was  the  distinct  declaration  of  Viglius  in  a  private 
letter  to  Granvelle.  "  Many  seek  to  abolish  the  chastise- 
ment of  heresy,"  said  he ;  "  if  they  gain  this  point,  actum 
est  de  religione  CathoUcd;  for  as  most  of  the  people  are 
ignorant  fools,  the  heretics  will  soon  be  the  great  ma- 
jority, if  by  fear  of  punishment  they  are  not  kept  in  the 
true  path."  ^ 

The  uneasiness,  the  terror,  the  wrath  of  the  people 
seemed  rapidly  culminating  to  a  crisis.  Nothing  was 
talked  of  but  the  edicts  and  the  Inquisition.  Nothing 
else  entered  into  the  minds  of  men.  In  the  streets,  in 
the  shops,  in  the  taverns,  in  the  fields;  at  market,  at 
church,  at  funerals,  at  weddings ;  in  the  noble's  castle, 
at  the  farmer's  fireside,  in  the  mechanic's  garret,  upon 
the  merchants'  exchange,  there  was  but  one  perpetual 
subject  of  shuddering  conversation.  It  was  better,  men 
began  to  whisper  to  each  other,  to  die  at  once  than  to 
live  in  perpetual  slavery.  It  was  better  to  fall  with 
arms  in  hand  than  to  be  tortured  and  butchered  by  the 
Inquisition.  Who  could  expect  to  contend  with  such  a 
foe  in  the  dark  ? 

They  reproached  the  municipal  authorities  with  lend- 
ing themselves  as  instruments  to  the  institution.  They 
asked  magistrates  and  sheriffs  how  far  they  would  go  in 
their  defense  before  God's  tribunal  for  the  slaughter  of 
his  creatures,  if  they  could  only  answer  the  divine 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  370,  371. 


122  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

arraignment  by  appealing  to  the  edict  of  1550,^  On  the 
other  hand,  the  inquisitors  were  clamorous  in  abuse  of 
the  languor  and  the  cowardice  of  the  secular  authorities. 
They  wearied  the  ear  of  the  duchess  with  complaints  of 
the  difficulties  which  they  encountered  in  the  execution 
of  their  functions— of  the  slight  alacrity  on  the  part  of 
the  various  officials  to  assist  them  in  the  discharge  of 
their  duties.  Notwithstanding  the  express  command 
of  his  Majesty  to  that  effect,  they  experienced,  they  said, 
a  constant  deficiency  of  that  cheerful  cooperation  which 
they  had  the  right  to  claim,  and  there  was  perpetual 
discord  in  consequence.  They  had  been  empowered  by 
papal  and  by  royal  decree  to  make  use  of  the  jails,  the 
constables,  the  whole  penal  machinery  of  each  province ; 
yet  the  officers  often  refused  to  act,  and  had  even  dared 
to  close  the  prisons.  Nevertheless,  it  had  been  intended, 
as  fully  appeared  by  the  imperial  and  royal  instructions 
to  the  inquisitors,  that  their  action  through  the  medium 
of  the  provincial  authorities  should  be  unrestrained. 
Not  satisfied  with  these  representations  to  the  regent, 
the  inquisitors  had  also  made  a  direct  appeal  to  the  king. 
Judocus  Tiletanus  and  Michael  de  Bay  addressed  to 
Philip  a  letter  from  Louvain.  They  represented  to  him 
that  they  were  the  only  two  left  of  the  five  inquisitors- 
general  appointed  by  the  pope  for  all  the  Netherlands, 
the  other  three  having  been  recently  converted  into  MsJiops. 
Daily  complaints,  they  said,  were  reaching  them  of  the 
prodigious  advance  of  heresy,  but  their  own  office  was 
becoming  so  odious,  so  calumniated,  and  exposed  to  so 
much  resistance  that  they  could  not  perform  its  duties 
without  personal  danger.  They  urgently  demanded 
from  his  Majesty,  therefore,  additional  support  and 
1  Hoofd,  ii.  65. 


1565]  POPULAR  FRENZY  123 

assistance.!  Thus  the  duchess,  exposed  at  once  to  the 
rising  wrath  of  a  whole  people  and  to  the  shrill  blasts  of 
inquisitorial  anger,  was  tossed  to  and  fro,  as  upon  a 
stormy  sea.  The  commands  of  the  king,  too  explicit  to 
be  tampered  with,  were  obeyed.  The  theological  as- 
sembly had  met  and  given  advice.  The  Council  of  Trent 
was  here  and  there  enforced.  The  edicts  were  repub- 
lished and  the  inquisitors  encouraged.  Moreover,  in 
accordance  with  Philip's  suggestion,  orders  were  now 
given  that  the  heretics  should  be  executed  at  midnight 
in  their  dungeons,  by  binding  their  heads  between  their 
knees,  and  then  slowly  suffocating  them  in  tubs  of  water.^ 
Secret  drowning  was  substituted  for  public  burning,  in 
order  that  the  heretic's  crown  of  vainglory,  which  was 
thought  to  console  him  in  his  agony,  might  never  be 
placed  upon  his  head. 

In  the  course  of  the  summer,  Margaret  wrote  to  her 
brother  that  the  popular  frenzy  was  becoming  more  and 
more  intense.  The  people  were  crying  aloud,  she  said, 
that  the  Spanish  Inquisition,  or  a  worse  than  Spanish 
Inquisition,  had  been  established  among  them  by  means 
of  bishops  and  ecclesiastics.^  She  urged  Philip  to  cause 
the  instructions  for  the  inquisitors  to  be  revised.  Eg- 
mont,  she  said,  was  vehement  in  expressing  his  dissatis- 
faction at  the  discrepancy  between  Philip's  language  to 
him  by  word  of  mouth  and  that  of  the  royal  despatches 
on  the  religious  question.  The  other  seigniors  were 
even  more  indignant. 

While  the  popular  commotion  in  the  Netherlands  was 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  353. 

2  Meteren,  ii.  30"*.  Brandt,  Reformatie,  i.  v.  278.  Compare  De 
Thou,  V.  xl.  206;  Hopper,  Rec.  et  Mem.,  56,  57. 

*  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  360-364. 


124  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1565 

thus  fearfully  increasing,  another  circumstance  came  to 
add  to  the  prevailing  discontent.  The  celebrated  inter- 
view between  Catherine  de'  Medici  and  her  daughter,  the 
Queen  of  Spain,  occurred  in  the  middle  of  the  month  of 
June,  at  Bayonne.  The  darkest  suspicions  as  to  the 
results  to  humanity  of  the  plots  to  be  engendered  in  this 
famous  conference  between  the  representatives  of  France 
and  Spain  were  universally  entertained.  These  suspi- 
cions were  most  reasonable,  but  they  were  nevertheless 
mistaken.  The  plan  for  a  concerted  action  to  exterminate 
the  heretics  in  both  kingdoms  had,  as  it  was  perfectly 
well  known,  been  formed  long  before  this  epoch.  It 
was  also  no  secret  that  the  Queen  Regent  of  France  had 
been  desirous  of  meeting  her  son-in-law  in  order  to  confer 
with  him  upon  important  matters  face  to  face.  Philip, 
however,  had  latterly  been  disinclined  for  the  personal 
interview  with  Catherine.^  As  his  wife  was  most  anxious 
to  meet  her  mother,  it  was  nevertheless  finally  arranged 
that  Queen  Isabella  should  make  the  journey ;  but  he 
excused  himself,  on  account  of  the  multiplicity  of  his 
affairs,  from  accompanying  her  in  the  expedition.  The 
Duke  of  Alva  was,  accordingly,  appointed  to  attend  the 
queen  to  Bayonne.  Both  were  secretly  instructed  by 
Philip  to  leave  nothing  undone  in  the  approaching  inter- 
view toward  obtaining  the  hearty  cooperation  of  Cathe- 
rine de'  Medici  in  a  general  and  formally  arranged 
scheme  for  the  simultaneous  extermination  of  all  here- 
tics in  the  French  and  Spanish  dominions.  Alva's  con- 
duct in  this  diplomatic  commission  was  stealthy  in  the 
extreme.  His  letters  ^  reveal  a  subtlety  of  contrivance 
and  delicacy  of  handling  such  as  the  world  has  not  gener- 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  380,  381. 

2  These  remarkable  letters  are  published  in  the  Papiers  d'fetat 


1565]  THE  BAYONNE  INTERVIEW  125 

ally  reckoned  among  his  characteristics.  All  his  adroit- 
ness, as  well  as  the  tact  of  Queen  Isabella,  by  whose 
ability  Alva  declared  himself  to  have  been  astounded, 
proved  quite  powerless  before  the  steady  fencing  of  the 
wily  Catherine.  The  queen  regent,  whose  skill  the 
duke,  even  while  defeated,  acknowledged  to  his  master, 
continued  firm  in  her  design  to  maintain  her  own  power 
by  holding  the  balance  between  Guise  and  Montmorency, 
between  Leaguer  and  Huguenot.  So  long  as  her  enemies 
could  be  employed  in  exterminating  each  other,  she  was 
willing  to  defer  the  extermination  of  the  Huguenots. 
The  great  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  was  to  sleep  for 
seven  years  longer.  Alva  was,  to  be  sure,  much  encour- 
aged at  first  by  the  language  of  the  French  princes  and 
nobles  who  were  present  at  Bayonne.  Montluc  protested 
that  "  they  might  saw  the  queen  dowager  in  two  before 
she  would  become  Huguenot."  ^  Montpensier  exclaimed 
that  "he  would  be  cut  in  pieces  for  Philip's  service- 
that  the  Spanish  monarch  was  the  only  hope  for  France," 
and,  embracing  Alva  with  fervor,  he  affirmed  that  "  if 
his  body  were  to  be  opened  at  that  moment,  the  name  of 
Philip  would  be  found  imprinted  upon  his  heart."  ^  The 
duke,  having  no  power  to  proceed  to  an  autopsy,  physical 
or  moral,  of  Montpensier's  interior,  was  left  somewhat  in 
the  dark,  notwithstanding  these  ejaculations.  His  first 
conversation  with  the  youthful  king,  however,  soon  dis- 
pelled his  hopes.     He  found  immediately,  in  his  own 

du  Card.  Grauvelle,  ix.  281-330,  and  reveal  the  whole  truth  con- 
cerning the  famous  conference  of  Bayonne. 

1  "Se  dexaria  asserrar  que  hazerse  ugonota."— Papiers  d'Etat, 
uM  sup. 

^  "  Que  por  V.  M.  se  dexaria  hacer  pedazos  .  .  .  y  que  si  le 
abriasen  el  cora^on  le  hallarian  escripto  el  nombre  de  V.  M."— 
Ibid. 


126  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1565 

words,  that  Charles  IX. ''  had  been  doctored,"  ^  To  take 
up  arms  for  religious  reasons  against  his  own  subjects 
the  monarch  declared  to  be  ruinous  and  improper.  It 
was  obvious  to  Alva  that  the  royal  pupil  had  learned  his 
lesson  for  that  occasion.  It  was  a  pity  for  humanity 
that  the  wisdom  thus  hypocritically  taught  him  could 
not  have  sunk  into  his  heart.  The  duke  did  his  best  to 
bring  forward  the  plans  and  wishes  of  his  royal  master, 
but  without  success.  The  queen  regent  proposed  a 
league  of  the  two  kings  and  the  emperor  against  the 
Turk,  and  wished  to  arrange  various  matrimonial  alli- 
ances between  the  sons  and  daughters  of  the  three  houses. 
Alva  expressed  the  opinion  that  the  alliances  were  al- 
ready close  enough,  while,  on  the  contrary,  a  secret 
league  against  the  Protestants  would  make  all  three 
families  the  safer.  Catherine,  however,  was  not  to  be 
turned  from  her  position.  She  refused  even  to  admit 
that  the  Chancellor  de  L'Hopital  was  a  Huguenot,  to 
which  the  duke  replied  that  she  was  the  only  person  in 
her  kingdom  who  held  that  opinion.  She  expressed  an 
intention  of  convoking  an  assemblj'^  of  doctors,  and  Alva 
ridiculed  in  his  letters  to  Philip  the  affectation  of  such 
a  proceeding.  In  short,  she  made  it  sufficiently  evident 
that  the  hour  for  the  united  action  of  the  French  and 
Spanish  sovereigns  against  their  subjects  had  not  struck, 
so  that  the  famous  Bayonne  conference  was  terminated 
without  a  result.  It  seemed  not  the  less  certain,  how- 
ever, in  the  general  opinion  of  mankind,  that  all  the 
particulars  of  a  regular  plot  had  been  definitely  arranged 
upon  this  occasion  for  the  extermination  of  the  Prot- 
estants, and  the  error  has  been  propagated  by  historians 

1  "Como  es,  deseubri  lo  que  le  tenian  predicado."— Papiers 
d'flta4;,  ubi  sup. 


1565]  THE  INQUISITION  SUSTAINED  127 

of  great  celebrity  of  all  parties  down  to  our  own  days. 
The  secret  letters  of  Alva,  however,  leave  no  doubt  as 
to  the  facts. 

In  the  course  of  November,  fresh  letters  from  Philip 
arrived  in  the  Netherlands,  confirming  everything  which 
he  had  previously  written.  He  wrote  personally  to  the 
inquisitors-general,  Tiletanus  and  De  Bay,  encouraging 
them,  commending  them,  promising  them  his  support, 
and  urging  them  not  to  be  deterred  by  apy  consideration 
from  thoroughly  fulfilling  their  duties.  He  wrote  Peter 
Titelmann  a  letter  in  which  he  applauded  the  pains  taken 
by  that  functionary  to  remedy  the  ills  which  religion  was 
suffering,  assured  him  of  his  gratitude,  exhorted  him  to 
continue  in  his  virtuous  course,  and  avowed  his  deter- 
mination to  spare  neither  pains,  expense,  nor  even  his 
own  life  to  sustain  the  Catholic  faith.  To  the  duchess 
he  wrote  at  great  length  and  in  most  unequivocal  lan- 
guage. He  denied  that  what  he  had  written  from  Val- 
ladolid  was  of  different  meaning  from  the  sense  of  the 
despatches  by  Egmont.  With  regard  to  certain  Ana- 
baptist prisoners,  concerning  whose  fate  Margaret  had 
requested  his  opinion,  he  commanded  their  execution, 
adding  that  such  was  his  will  in  the  case  of  all,  whatever 
their  quality,  who  could  be  caught.  That  which  the 
people  said  in  the  Netherlands  touching  the  Inquisition, 
he  pronounced  extremely  distasteful  to  him.  That  in- 
stitution, which  had  existed  under  his  predecessors,  he 
declared  more  necessary  than  ever ;  nor  would  he  suffer 
it  to  be  discredited.  He  desired  his  sister  to  put  no  faith 
in  idle  talk  as  to  the  inconveniences  likely  to  flow  from 
the  rigor  of  the  Inquisition.  Much  greater  inconve- 
niences would  be  the  result  if  the  inquisitors  did  not  pro- 
ceed with  their  labors,  and  the  duchess  was  commanded 


128  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1565 

to  write  to  the  secular  judges,  enjoining  upon  them  to 
place  no  obstacles  in  the  path,  but  to  afford  all  the  assis- 
tance which  might  be  required.^ 

To  Egmont  the  king  wrote  with  his  own  hand,  ap- 
plauding much  that  was  contained  in  the  recent  decisions 
of  the  assembly  of  bishops  and  doctors  of  divinity,  and 
commanding  the  count  to  assist  in  the  execution  of  the 
royal  determination.  In  affairs  of  religion,  Philip  ex- 
pressed the  opinion  that  dissimulation  and  weakness 
were  entirely  out  of  place.^ 

When  these  decisive  letters  came  before  the  state  coun- 
cil, the  consternation  was  extreme.  The  duchess  had 
counted,  in  spite  of  her  inmost  convictions,  upon  less 
peremptory  instructions.  The  Prince  of  Orange,  the 
Count  of  Egmont,  and  the  admiral  were  loud  in  their 
denunciations  of  the  royal  policy.  There  was  a  violent 
and  protracted  debate.  The  excitement  spread  at  once 
to  the  people.  Inflammatory  handbills  were  circulated. 
Placards  were  posted  every  night  upon  the  doors  of 
Orange,  Egmont,  and  Horn,  calling  upon  them  to  come 
forth  boldly  as  champions  of  the  people  and  of  liberty 
in  religious  matters.^  Banquets  were  held  daily  at  the 
houses  of  the  nobility,  in  which  the  more  ardent  and 
youthful  of  their  order,  with  brains  excited  by  wine  and 
anger,  indulged  in  flaming  invectives  against  the  govern- 
ment, and  interchanged  vows  to  protect  each  other  and 
the  cause  of  the  oppressed  provinces.  Meanwhile  the 
privy  council,  to  which  body  the  duchess  had  referred 
the  recent  despatches  from  Madrid,  made  a  report  upon 
the  whole  subject  to  the  state  council,  during  the  month 

1  Correspondauce  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  369-373. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  375. 

3  Hoofd,  ii.  66. 


1565]  CONSTERNATION  OF   VIGLIUS  129 

of  November,  sustaining  the  royal  views,  and  insisting 
upon  the  necessity  of  carrying  them  into  effect.  The 
edicts  and  Inquisition  having  been  so  vigorously  insisted 
upon  by  the  king,  nothing  was  to  be  done  but  to  issue 
new  proclamations  throughout  the  country,  together  with 
orders  to  bishops,  councils,  governors,  and  judges  that 
every  care  should  be  taken  to  enforce  them  to  the  full.i 

This  report  came  before  the  state  council,  and  was 
sustained  by  some  of  its  members.  The  Prince  of  Orange 
expressed  the  same  uncompromising  hostility  to  the  In- 
quisition which  he  had  always  manifested,  but  observed 
that  the  commands  of  the  king  were  so  precise  and 
absolute  as  to  leave  no  possibility  of  discussing  that 
point.  There  was  nothing  to  be  done,  he  said,  but  to 
obey,  but  he  washed  his  hands  of  the  fatal  consequences 
which  he  foresaw.^  There  was  no  longer  any  middle 
course  between  obedience  and  rebellion.  This  opinion, 
the  soundness  of  which  could  scarcely  be  disputed,  was 
also  sustained  by  Egmont  and  Horn. 

Viglius,  on  the  contrary,  nervous,  agitated,  appalled, 
was  now  disposed  to  temporize.  He  observed  that  if  the 
seigniors  feared  such  evil  results  it  would  be  better  to 
prevent,  rather  than  to  accelerate,  the  danger  which 
would  follow  the  proposed  notification  to  the  governors 
and  municipal  authorities  throughout  the  country  on 
the  subject  of  the  Inquisition.  To  make  haste  was 
neither  to  fulfil  the  intentions  nor  to  serve  the  interests 
of  the  king,  and  it  was  desirable  "  to  avoid  emotion  and 
scandal."  Upon  these  heads  the  president  made  a  very 
long  speech,  avowing,  in  conclusion,  that  if  his  Majesty 
should  not  find  the  course  proposed  agreeable,  he  was 
ready  to  receive  all  the  indignation  upon  his  own  head.^ 

1  Hopper,  58,  59.  2  i^id.,  59.  3  -Qjjd.,  59^  60. 

VOL.  II.— 9 


130  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1565 

Certainly  this  position  of  the  president  was  somewhat 
inconsistent  with  his  previous  course.  He  had  been 
most  violent  in  his  denunciations  of  all  who  should  inter- 
fere with  the  execution  of  the  great  edict  of  which  he 
had  been  the  original  di-aftsman.  He  had  recently  been 
ferocious  in  combating  the  opinion  of  those  civilians 
in  the  assembly  of  doctors  who  had  advocated  the  abo- 
lition of  the  death-penalty  against  heresy.  He  had  ex- 
pressed with  great  energy  his  private  opinion  that  the 
ancient  religion  would  perish  if  the  machinery  of  perse- 
cution were  taken  away ;  yet  he  now  for  the  first  time 
seemed  to  hear  or  to  heed  the  outcry  of  a  whole  nation, 
and  to  tremble  at  the  sound.  Now  that  the  die  had  been 
cast,  in  accordance  with  the  counsels  of  his  whole  life, 
— now  that  the  royal  commands,  often  enigmatical  and 
hesitating,  were  at  last  too  distinct  to  be  misconstrued 
and  too  peremptory  to  be  tampered  with,— the  president 
imagined  the  possibility  of  delay.  The  health  of  the 
ancient  Frisian  had  but  recently  permitted  him  to 
resume  his  seat  at  the  council-board.  His  presence 
there  was  but  temporary,  for  he  had  received  from 
Madrid  the  acceptance  of  his  resignation,  accompanied 
with  orders  to  discharge  the  duties  of  president  ^  until 
the  arrival  of  his  successor,  Charles  de  Tisnacq.  Thus, 
in  his  own  language,  the  duchess  was  still  obliged  to  rely 
for  a  season  ''  upon  her  ancient  Palinurus,"  2  a  necessity 
far  from  agreeable  to  her,  for  she  had  lost  confidence  in 
the  pilot.  It  may  be  supposed  that  he  was  anxious  to 
smooth  the  troubled  waters  during  the  brief  period  in 
which  he  was  still  to  be  exposed  to  their  fury ;  but  he 
poured  out  the  oil  of  his  eloquence  in  vain.     Nobody 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  442.     Vit.  Viglii,  45. 

2  Vit.  Viglii,  45. 


1565]  PROLOGUE  TO  THE  TRAGEDY  131 

sustained  his  propositions.  The  duchess,  although  ter- 
rified at  the  probable  consequences,  felt  the  impossibility 
of  disobeying  the  deliberate  decree  of  her  brother.  A 
proclamation  was  accordingly  prepared,  by  which  it  was 
ordered  that  the  Council  of  Trent,  the  edicts,  and  the 
Inquisition  should  be  published  in  every  town  and  vil- 
lage in  the  provinces  immediately,  and  once  in  six 
months  forever  afterward.^  The  deed  was  done,  and 
the  Prince  of  Orange,  stooping  to  the  ear  of  his  next 
neighbor  as  they  sat  at  the  council-board,  whispered 
that  they  were  now  about  to  witness  the  commencement 
of  the  most  extraordinary  tragedy  which  had  ever  been 
enacted.2  The  prophecy  was  indeed  a  proof  that  the 
prince  could  read  the  future,  but  the  sarcasm  of  the 
president,  that  the  remark  had  been  made  in  a  tone  of 
exultation,^  was  behed  by  every  action  of  the  prophet's 
life. 

The  fiat  went  forth.  In  the  market-place  of  every 
town  and  village  of  the  Netherlands,  the  Inquisition 
was  again  formally  proclaimed.  Every  doubt  which  had 
hitherto  existed  as  to  the  intention  of  the  government 
was  swept  away.  No  argument  was  thenceforward  to 
be  permissible  as  to  the  constitutionality  of  the  edicts— 
as  to  the  compatibility  of  their  provisions  with  the  privi- 
leges of  the  land.  The  cry  of  a  people  in  its  agony 
ascended  to  Heaven,  The  decree  was  answered  with  a 
howl  of  execration.    The  flames  of  popular  frenzy  *  arose 

1  Bor,  i.  32,  33.     Meteren,  ii.  37. 

2  "Visuros  nos  brevi  egregiaa  tragoedise  initium."— Vit.  Viglii, 
45. 

3  "Quasi  Ifetus,  gloriabundusque."— Ibid. 

*  "Depuis  ieelles  publiees  par  lettres  de  S.  A.  aux  evesques, 
consaiilx  et  bonnes  villes,  c'est  chose  incroyable  quelles  flammes 


132  THE  EISE   OF   THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1565 

lurid  and  threatening  above  the  housetops  of  every 
town  and  village.  The  impending  conflict  could  no 
longer  be  mistaken.  The  awful  tragedy  which  the  great 
watchman  in  the  land  had  so  long  unceasingly  predicted 
was  seen  sweeping  solemnly  and  steadily  onward.  The 
superstitious  eyes  of  the  age  saw  supernatural  and  omi- 
nous indications  in  the  sky.  Contending  armies  trampled 
the  clouds ;  blood  dropped  from  heaven ;  the  exterminat- 
ing angel  rode  upon  the  wind. 

There  was  almost  a  cessation  of  the  ordinary  business 
of  mankind.  Commerce  was  paralyzed.  Antwerp 
shook  as  with  an  earthquake.  A  chasm  seemed  to 
open,  in  which  her  prosperity  and  her  very  existence 
were  to  be  forever  engulfed.  The  foreign  merchants, 
manufacturers,  and  artisans  fled  from  her  gates  as  if 
the  plague  were  raging  within  them.  Thriving  cities 
were  likely  soon  to  be  depopulated.  The  metropolitan 
heart  of  the  whole  country  was  almost  motionless.^ 

Men  high  in  authority  sympathized  with  the  general 
indignation.  The  Marquis  Berghen,  the  younger  Mans- 
feld,  the  Baron  Montigny,  openly  refused  to  enforce 
the  edicts  within  their  governments.  Men  of  eminence 
inveighed  boldly  and  bitterly  against  the  tyranny  of  the 
government,  and  counseled  disobedience.  The  Nether- 
landers,  it  was  stoutly  maintained,  were  not  such  sense- 
less brutes  as  to  be  ignorant  of  the  mutual  relation  of 
prince  and  people.  They  knew  that  the  obligation  of  a 
king  to  his  vassals  was  as  sacred  as  were  the  duties  of 
the  subjects  to  the  sovereign.^ 

jecta  le  feu,  d'auparavant  cache  soulz  les  cendres,"  etc.— Hopper, 
Rec.  et  M6m.,  62. 

1  Hoofd,  ii.  68.     Bor,  i.  34,  35. 

2  Hopper,  62. 


1565]  BRABANTINE  DETERMINATION  133 

The  four  principal  cities  of  Brabant  first  came  forward 
in  formal  denunciation  of  the  outrage.  An  elaborate 
and  conclusive  document  was  drawn  up  in  their  name 
and  presented  to  the  regent.^  It  set  forth  that  the  recent 
proclamation  violated  many  articles  in  the  "joyous 
entry."  That  ancient  constitution  had  circumscribed 
the  power  of  the  clergy,  and  the  jealousy  had  been  felt 
in  old  times  as  much  by  the  sovereign  as  the  people. 
No  ecclesiastical  tribunal  had  therefore  been  allowed, 
excepting  that  of  the  Bishop  of  Cambray,  whose  juris- 
diction was  expressly  confined  to  three  classes  of  cases 
— those  growing  out  of  marriages,  testaments,  and  mort- 
mains. 

It  would  be  superfluous  to  discuss  the  point  at  the 
present  day  whether  the  directions  to  the  inquisitors 
and  the  publication  of  the  edicts  conflicted  with  the 
"joyous  entrance."  To  take  a  man  from  his  house  and 
burn  him,  after  a  brief  preliminary  examination,  was 
clearly  not  to  follow  the  letter  and  spirit  of  the  Braban- 
tine  habeas  corpus,  by  which  inviolability  of  domicile  and 
regular  trials  were  secured  and  sworn  to  by  the  monarch ; 
yet  such  had  been  the  uniform  practice  of  inquisitors 
throughout  the  country.  The  petition  of  the  four  cities 
was  referred  by  the  regent  to  the  council  of  Brabant. 
The  chancellor  or  president- judge  of  that  tribunal  was 
notoriously  corrupt— a  creature  of  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment. His  efforts  to  sustain  the  policy  of  the  adminis- 
tration were,  however,  vain.  The  duchess  ordered  the 
archives  of  the  province  to  be  searched  for  precedents, 

1  Hopper,  63  sqq.  Bor,  i.  35.  Metereu,  ii.  37.  Hoofd,  ii.  68, 
69.  Supplement  a  I'Hist.  des  Guerres  Civiles  du  Pere  F.  Strada, 
par  Foppens  (Amst.  1729),  vol.  ii.  291,  292,  Letter  of  Margaret 
of  Parma. 


134  THE  RISE  OF   THE   DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

and  the  council  to  report  upon  the  petition.^  The  case 
was  too  plain  for  argument  or  dogmatism,  but  the  at- 
tempt was  made  to  take  refuge  in  obscurity.  The 
answer  of  the  council  was  hesitating  and  equivocal.^ 
The  duchess  insisted  upon  a  distinct  and  categorical 
answer  to  the  four  cities.  Thus  pressed,  the  council  of 
Brabant  declared  roundly  that  no  inquisition  of  any 
kind  had  ever  existed  in  the  provinces.^  It  was  impos- 
sible that  any  other  answer  could  be  given,  but  Viglius, 
with  his  associates  in  the  privy  council,  was  extremely 
angry  at  the  conclusion.*  The  concession  was,  however, 
made,  notwithstanding  the  bad  example  which,  accord- 
ing to  some  persons,  the  victory  thus  obtained  by  so 
important  a  province  would  afford  to  the  people  in  the 
other  parts  of  the  country.  Brabant  was  declared  free 
of  the  Inquisition.^  Meanwhile  the  pamphlets,  hand- 
bills, pasquils,  and  other  popular  productions  were 
multiplied.  To  use  a  Flemish  expression,  they  "  snowed 
in  the  streets."  They  were  nailed  nightly  on  all  the 
great  houses  in  Brussels.®  Patriots  were  called  upon  to 
strike,  speak,  redress.  Pungent  lampoons,  impassioned 
invectives,  and  earnest  remonstrances  were  thrust  into 
the  hands  of  the  duchess.  The  publications,  as  they 
appeared,  were  greedily  devoured  by  the  people.  "  We 
are  willing,"  it  was  said  in  a  remarkable  letter  to  the 
king,  ''to  die  for  the  gospel,  but  we  read  therein, 
'Render  unto  Ceesar  that  which  is  Caesar's,  and  unto 
God  that  which  is  God's.'    We  thank  God  that  our 

1  Strada,  v.  168.     Hoofd,  ii.  69.     Hopper,  ubi  sup. 

2  Bor,  i.  39,  40.     Hoofd,  Hopper,  ubi  sup. 

*  Hopper,  64.     Bor,  Hoofd,  ubi  sup. 

*  Hopper,  ubi  sup.  5  itdd.,  65. 
6  Bor,  ii.  53.     Hoofd,  ii.  70,  71. 


1565]       CHARACTER  OP  THE  NETHERLANDERS         135 

enemies  themselves  are  compelled  to  bear  witness  to  our 
piety  and  patience,  so  that  it  is  a  common  saying,  '  He 
swears  not— he  is  a  Protestant ;  he  is  neither  a  fornicator 
nor  a  drunkard— he  is  of  the  new  sect.'  Yet,  notwith- 
standing these  testimonials  to  our  character,  no  manner 
of  punishment  has  been  forgotten  by  which  we  can 
possibly  be  chastised."  ^  This  statement  of  the  morality 
of  the  Puritans  of  the  Netherlands  was  the  justification 
of  martyrs,  not  the  self-glorification  of  Pharisees.  The 
fact  was  incontrovertible.  Their  tenets  were  rigid,  but 
their  lives  were  pure.  They  belonged  generally  to  the 
middling  and  lower  classes.  They  were  industrious 
artisans,  who  desired  to  live  in  the  fear  of  G-od  and  in 
honor  of  their  king.  They  were  protected  by  nobles 
and  gentlemen  of  high  position,  very  many  of  whom 
came  afterward  warmly  to  espouse  the  creed  which  at 
first  they  had  only  generously  defended.  Their  whole 
character  and  position  resembled,  in  many  features, 
those  of  the  English  Puritans,  who,  three  quarters  of  a 
century  afterward,  fled  for  refuge  to  the  Dutch  Repub- 
lic, and  thence  departed  to  establish  the  American  Re- 
public. The  difference  was  that  the  Netherlanders  were 
exposed  to  a  longer  persecution  and  a  far  more  intense 
martyrdom. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  year  (1565)  which  was  closing 
in  such  universal  gloom,  the  contemporary  chronicles 
are  enlivened  with  a  fitful  gleam  of  sunshine.  The  light 
enlivens  only  the  more  elevated  regions  of  the  Flemish 
world,  but  it  is  pathetic  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  those 
nobles,  many  of  whose  lives  were  to  be  so  heroic,  and 
whose  destinies  so  tragic,  as  amid  the  shadows  projected 
by  coming  evil  they  still  found  time  for  the  chivalrous 
1  Bor,  i.  43-50. 


136  THE  EISE  or  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

festivals  of  their  land  and  epoch.  A  splendid  tourna- 
ment was  held  at  the  Chateau  d'Antoing  to  celebrate 
the  nuptials  of  Baron  Montigny  with  the  daughter  of 
Prince  d'Espinoy.  Orange,  Horn,  and  Hoogstraaten 
were  the  challengers,  and  maintained  themselves  victo- 
riously against  all  comers,  Egmont  and  other  distin- 
guished knights  being  among  the  number.^ 

Thus  brilliantly  and  gaily  moved  the  first  hours  of 
that  marriage  which  before  six  months  had  fled  was  to 
be  so  darkly  terminated.  The  doom  which  awaited  the 
chivalrous  bridegroom  in  the  dungeon  of  Simancas  was 
ere  long  to  be  recorded  in  one  of  the  foulest  chapters  of 
Philip's  tyranny. 

A  still  more  elaborate  marriage-festival,  of  which  the 
hero  was,  at  a  later  day,  to  exercise  a  most  decisive 
influence  over  the  fortunes  of  the  land,  was  celebrated 
at  Brussels  before  the  close  of  the  year.  It  will  be  re- 
membered that  Alexander,  Prince  of  Parma,  had  accom- 
panied Egmont  on  his  return  from  Spain  in  the  month 
of  April.  The  duchess  had  been  delighted  with  the 
appearance  of  her  son,  then  twenty  years  of  age,  but 
already  an  accomplished  cavalier.  She  had  expressed 
her  especial  pleasure  in  finding  him  so  thoroughly  a 
Spaniard  "in  manner,  costume,  and  conversation"  that 
it  could  not  be  supposed  he  had  ever  visited  any  other 
land  or  spoken  any  other  tongue  than  that  of  Spain.^ 

The  nobles  of  the  Flemish  court  did  not  participate 
in  the  mother's  enthusiasm.  It  could  not  be  denied 
that  he  was  a  handsome  and  gallant  young  prince,  but 
his  arrogance  was  so  intolerable  as  to  disgust  even  those 
most  disposed  to  pay  homage  to  Margaret's  son.     He 

1  Archives  et  Correspondance,  i.  421.     Pasq.  de  la  Barre  MS. 

2  Correspondance  de  Phil.  II.,  i.  354. 


1565]  MARRIAGE-FEASTS  137 

kept  himseK  mainly  in  haughty  retirement,  dined  habit- 
ually alone  in  his  own  apartments,  and  scarcely  honored 
any  of  the  gentlemen  of  the  Netherlands  with  his  notice.^ 
Even  Egmont,  to  whose  care  he  had  been  especially 
recommended  by  Philip,  was  slighted.  If  occasionally 
he  honored  one  or  two  of  the  seigniors  with  an  invita- 
tion to  his  table,  he  sat  alone  in  solemn  state  at  the 
head  of  the  board,  while  the  guests,  to  whom  he  scarcely 
vouchsafed  a  syllable,  were  placed  on  stools  without 
backs,  below  the  salt.^  Such  insolence,  it  may  be  sup- 
posed, was  sufficiently  galling  to  men  of  the  proud 
character,  but  somewhat  reckless  demeanor,  which  dis- 
tinguished the  Netherland  aristocracy.  After  a  short 
time  they  held  themselves  aloof,  thinking  it  sufficient  to 
endure  such  airs  from  Philip,  The  duchess  at  first  en- 
couraged the  young  prince  in  his  haughtiness,  but  soon 
became  sad  as  she  witnessed  its  effects.  It  was  the 
universal  opinion  that  the  young  prince  was  a  mere 
compound  of  pride  and  emptiness.  **  There  is  nothing 
at  all  in  the  man,"^  said  Chantonnay.  Certainly  the 
expression  was  not  a  fortunate  one.  Time  was  to  show 
that  there  was  more  in  the  man  than  in  all  the  governors 
despatched  successively  by  Philip  to  the  Netherlands  j 
but  the  proof  was  to  be  deferred  to  a  later  epoch.  Mean- 
time his  mother  was  occupied  and  exceedingly  per- 
plexed with  his  approaching  nuptials.  He  had  been 
affianced  early  in  the  year  to  the  Princess  Donna  Maria 
of  Portugal.     It  was  found  necessary,  therefore,  to  send 

1  Papiers  d'Etat,  ix.  224. 

2  Ibid. :  "  Au  bas  boult  de  la  table  sur  seabeaux." 

'  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  394:  "Certes  jusques  k 
maintenant  nihil  est  in  homine  je  ne  8§ay  que  ce  sera  avec  le 
temps." 


138  THE  EISE  OP   THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1565 

a  fleet  of  several  vessels  to  Lisbon  to  fetch  the  bride  to 
the  Netherlands,^  the  wedding  being  appointed  to  take 
place  in  Brussels.  This  expense  alone  was  considerable, 
and  the  preparations  for  banquets,  justs,  and  other 
festivities  were  likewise  undertaken  on  so  magnificent  a 
scale  that  the  duke,  her  husband,  was  offended  at  Mar- 
garet's extravagance.2  The  people,  by  whom  she  was 
not  beloved,^  commented  bitterly  on  the  prodigalities 
which  they  were  witnessing  in  a  period  of  dearth  and 
trouble.*  Many  of  the  nobles  mocked  at  her  perplexity. 
To  crown  the  whole,  the  young  prince  was  so  obliging 
as  to  express  the  hope,  in  his  mother's  hearing,  that  the 
bridal  fleet,  then  on  its  way  from  Portugal,  might  sink, 
with  all  it  contained,  to  the  bottom  of  the  sea.^ 

The  poor  duchess  was  infinitely  chagrined  by  all  these 
circumstances.  The ''  insane  and  outrageous  expenses  "  ^ 
in  which  the  nuptials  had  involved  her,  the  rebukes 
of  her  husband,  the  sneers  of  the  seigniors,  the  unduti- 
ful  epigrams  of  her  son,  the  ridicule  of  the  people, 
affected  her  spirits  to  such  a  degree,  harassed  as  she  was 
with  grave  matters  of  state,  that  she  kept  her  rooms  for 
days  together,  weeping,  hour  after  hour,  in  the  most 
piteous  manner.      Her  distress  was  the   town-talk ;  '^ 

1  Papiers  d'fitat,  ix.  218. 

2  Ibid.,  ix.  385,  386,  601. 

3  Archives  et  Correspondanee,  i.  425. 

*  Ibid.,  ix.  601. 

^  Ibid.,  ix.  386:  "Le  jeune  homme  sciente  matre  diet  qu'il 
vouldroit  que  tout  ce  que  vad  et  reviendra  demeurast  au  foud  de 
la  mer." 

*  "La  foUe  et  oultrageuse  depense  des  nopees,"  etc.— Papiers 
d'fetat,  ix.  601. 

'  "  Que  I'on  sjait  k  parler  par  toute  la  ville  de  ceste  plorerie."— 
Ibid. 


1565]  A  MODEL  PRINCESS  139 

nevertheless,  the  fleet  arrived  in  the  autumn,  and 
brought  the  youthful  Maria  to  the  provinces.  This 
young  lady,  if  the  faithful  historiographer  of  the  Farnese 
house  is  to  be  credited,  was  the  paragon  of  princesses,^ 
She  was  the  daughter  of  Prince  Edward,  and  grand- 
daughter of  John  III.  She  was  young  and  beautiful ; 
she  could  talk  both  Latin  and  Greek,  besides  being  well 
versed  in  philosophy,  mathematics,  and  theology.^  She 
had  the  Scriptures  at  her  tongue's  end,  both  the  old  dis- 
pensation and  the  new,  and  could  quote  from  the  fathers 
with  the  promptness  of  a  bishop.  She  was  so  strictly 
orthodox  that,  on  being  compelled  by  stress  of  weather 
to  land  in  England,  she  declined  all  communication  with 
Queen  Elizabeth,  on  account  of  her  heresy.  She  was  so 
eminently  chaste  that  she  could  neither  read  the  sonnets 
of  Petrarch,  nor  lean  on  the  arm  of  a  gentleman,^  Her 
delicacy  upon  such  points  was,  indeed,  carried  to  such 
excess  that  upon  one  occasion,  when  the  ship  which  was 
bringing  her  to  the  Netherlands  was  discovered  to  be 
burning,  she  rebuked  a  rude  fellow  who  came  forward 

1  Strada,  iv.  157-162. 

2  Ibid. :  "Prsedicabaturque  tma  ingenio  omnia  eomprehendere : 
Latina  lingua  expedite  ac  perbene  loqui :  Graecas  litteras  proxime 
callere  :  philosophiam  non  ignorare  :  Mathematicorum  disciplinas 
apprime  nosse :  diviiia  utriusque  Testamenti  oracula  in  promptu 
habere." 

This  princess,  in  her  teens,  might  already  exclaim,  with  the 
venerable  Faustus : 

"  Habe  nun  Philosophie, 
Juristerei  und  Medicin 
Und  leider  ach !  Theologie 
Durehstudirt  mit  heissem  Bemiihen,"  etc. 

The  panegyrists  of  royal  houses  in  the  sixteenth  century  were 
not  accustomed  to  do  their  work  by  halves.  *  Ibid. 


140  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1565 

to  save  her  life,  assuring  him  that  there  was  less  con- 
tamination in  the  touch  of  fire  than  in  that  of  man.^ 
Fortunately,  the  flames  were  extinguished,  and  the 
phenix  of  Portugal  was  permitted  to  descend,  unburned, 
upon  the  bleak  shores  of  Flanders. 

The  occasion,  notwithstanding  the  recent  tears  of  the 
duchess  and  the  arrogance  of  the  prince,  was  the  signal 
for  much  festivity  among  the  courtiers  of  Brussels.  It 
was  also  the  epoch  from  which  movements  of  a  secret 
and  important  character  were  to  be  dated.  The  chev- 
aliers of  the  Fleece  were  assembled,  and  Viglius  pro- 
nounced before  them  one  of  his  most  classical  orations. 
He  had  a  good  deal  to  say  concerning  the  private  adven- 
tures of  St.  Andrew,  patron  of  the  order,  and  went  into 
some  details  of  a  conversation  which  that  venerated 
personage  had  once  held  with  the  proconsul  ^geas.^ 
The  moral  which  he  deduced  from  his  narrative  was  the 
necessity  of  union  among  the  magnates  for  the  main- 
tenance of  the  Catholic  faith,  the  nobility  and  the 
Church  being  the  two  columns  upon  which  the  whole 
social  fabric  reposed.^  It  is  to  be  feared  that  the  presi- 
dent became  rather  prosy  upon  the  occasion.  Perhaps 
his  homily,  like  those  of  the  factitious  Archbishop  of 
Granada,  began  to  smack  of  the  apoplexy  from  which 
he  had  so  recently  escaped.  Perhaps,  the  meeting  being 
one  of  hilarity,  the  younger  nobles  became  restive  under 
the  infliction  of  a  very  long  and  very  solemn  harangue. 
At  any  rate,  as  the  meeting  broke  up,  there  was  a  good 

1  "  .  .  .  Tu  vero,  inquit,  manum  actutum  abstine :  quasi  non 
minus  ab  hujus,  quam  a  flammarum  tactu  timeret  sibi,"  etc.— 
Strada,  iv.  157-162. 

2  Vit.  Viglii,  44. 

3  Ibid. 


1565]  ORATION  OP  VIGLIUS  14l 

deal  of  jesting  on  the  subject.  De  Hammes,  commonly 
called  "  Toison  d'Or,"  councilor  and  king-at-arms  of  the 
order,  said  that  the  president  had  been  seeing  visions 
and  talking  with  St.  Andrew  in  a  dream.  Marquis 
Berghen  asked  for  the  source  whence  he  had  derived 
such  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  ideas  of  the  saint. 
The  president  took  these  remarks  rather  testily,  and 
from  trifling  the  company  became  soon  earnestly  en- 
gaged in  a  warm  discussion  of  the  agitating  topics  of 
the  day.  It  soon  became  evident  to  Viglius  that  De 
Hammes  and  others  of  his  comrades  had  been  dealing 
with  dangerous  things.  He  began  shrewdly  to  suspect 
that  the  popular  heresy  was  rapidly  extending  into 
higher  regions ;  but  it  was  not  the  president  alone  who 
discovered  how  widely  the  contamination  was  spreading. 
The  meeting,  the  accidental  small  talk,  which  had  passed 
so  swiftly  from  gaiety  to  gravity,  the  rapid  exchange  of 
ideas,  and  the  freemasonry  by  which  intelligence  upon 
forbidden  topics  had  been  mutually  conveyed,  became 
events  of  historical  importance.  Interviews  between 
nobles  who,  in  the  course  of  the  festivities  produced  by 
the  Montigny  and  Parma  marriages,  had  discovered  that 
they  entertained  a  secret  similarity  of  sentiment  upon 
vital  questions,  became  of  frequent  occurrence.^  The 
result  to  which  such  conferences  led  will  be  narrated  in 
the  following  chapter. 

Meantime,  upon  the  11th  November,  1565,  the  mar- 
riage of  Prince  Alexander  and  Donna  Maria  was  cel- 
ebrated with  great  solemnity  by  the  Archbishop  of 
Cambray,  in  the  chapel  of  the  court  at  Brussels.  On 
the  following  Sunday  the  wedding-banquet  was  held  in 
the  great  hall  where,  ten  years  previously,  the  memorable 

1  Bor,  u.  53.     Hoofd,  ii.  70,  71. 


142  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1565 

abdication  of  the  bridegroom's  imperial  grandfather  had 
taken  place. 

The  walls  were  again  hung  with  the  magnificent 
tapestry  of  Gideon,  while  the  Knights  of  the  Fleece, 
with  all  the  other  grandees  of  the  land,  were  assembled 
to  grace  the  spectacle.^  The  king  was  represented  by  his 
envoy  in  England,  Don  Guzman  da  Silva,  who  came  to 
Brussels  for  the  occasion,  and  who  had  been  selected  for 
this  duty  because,  according  to  Armenteros,  "he  was 
endowed,  besides  his  prudence,  with  so  much  witty  grace- 
fulness with  ladies  in  matters  of  pastime  and  entertain- 
ment." ^  Early  in  the  month  of  December  a  famous 
tournament  was  held  in  the  great  market-place  of 
Brussels,  the  Duke  of  Parma,  the  Duke  of  Aerschot, 
and  Count  Egmont  being  judges  of  the  justs.  Count 
Mansfeld  was  the  challenger,  assisted  by  his  son  Charles, 
celebrated  among  the  gentry  of  the  land  for  his  dexterity 
in  such  sports.  To  Count  Charles  was  awarded  upon 
this  occasion  the  silver  cup  from  the  lady  of  the  lists. 
Count  Bossu  received  the  prize  for  breaking  best  his 
lances ;  the  Seigneur  de  Beauvoir  for  the  most  splendid 
entrance ;  Count  Louis  of  Nassau  for  having  borne  him- 
self most  gallantly  in  the  melee.  On  the  same  evening 
the  nobles,  together  with  the  bridal  pair,  were  enter- 
tained at  a  splendid  supper  given  by  the  city  of  Brus- 
sels in  the  magnificent  Hotel  de  Ville.  On  this  occasion 
the  prizes  gained  at  the  tournament  were  distributed, 
amid  the  applause  and  hilarity  of  all  the  revelers.^ 

:  1  De  la  Barre  MS.,  57. 

2  «'  Tiene  tambien  gracia  y  don  aire  con  las  damas  en  las  cosas  de 
passatiempo  y  entretenimiento."— Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II., 
1.365,  366. 

3  De  la  Barre  MS. 


15G5]  PARMA'S  NUPTIALS  143 

Thus,  with  banquet,  tourney,  and  merry  marriage- 
bells,  with  gaiety  gilding  the  surface  of  society,  while  a 
deadly  hatred  to  the  Inquisition  was  eating  into  the 
heart  of  the  nation,  and  while  the  fires  of  civil  war  were 
already  kindling,  of  which  no  living  man  was  destined 
to  witness  the  extinction,  ended  the  year  1565. 


CHAPTER  VI 

Francis  Junius— His  sermon  at  Culemburg  House— The  Compro- 
mise—Portraits of  Sainte-Aldegoude,  of  Louis  of  Nassau,  of 
"  Toison  d'Or,"  of  Charles  Mansf eld— Sketch  of  the  Compromise- 
Attitude  of  Orange — His  letter  to  the  duchess — Sigu  ers  of  the  Com- 
promise—Indiscretion of  the  confederates— Espionage  over  Philip 
by  Orange— Dissatisfaction  of  the  seigniors— Conduct  of  Egmont 
—Despair  of  the  people— Emigration  to  England— Its  effects— The 
Request — Meeting  at  Breda  and  Hoogsti"aaten — Exaggerated 
statements  concerning  the  Request  in  the  state  council— Hesita- 
tion of  the  duchess— Assembly  of  notables— Debate  concerning 
the  Request  and  the  Inquisition — Character  of  Brederode — Ar- 
rival of  the  petitioners  in  Brussels — Presentation  of  the  Request 
—Emotion  of  Margaret— Speech  of  Brederode— Sketch  of  the  Re- 
quest—Memorable sarcasm  of  Berlaymont— Deliberation  in  the 
state  council— Apostil  to  the  Request— Answer  to  the  apostil 
— Reply  of  the  duchess- Speech  of  D'Esquerdes— Response  of 
Margaret— Memorable  banquet  at  Culemburg  House — Name  of 
the  "beggars"  adopted— Orange,  Egmont,  and  Horn  break  up 
the  riotous  meeting— Costume  of  the  "  beggars  "—Brederode  at 
Antwerp— Horrible  execution  at  Oudenarde— Similar  cruelties 
throughout  the  provinces — Project  of  "Moderation"— Religious 
views  of  Orange— His  resignation  of  all  his  offices  not  accepted  — 
The  "Moderation"  charactei'ized- Egmont  at  Arras— Debate  on 
the  "  Moderation  "—Vacillation  of  Egmont— Mission  of  Montigny 
and  Berghen  to  Spain— Instructions  to  the  envoys— Secret  cor- 
respondence of  Philip  with  the  pope  concerning  the  Netherland 
Inquisition  and  the  edicts — Field-preaching  in  the  provinces — 
Modet  at  Ghent— Other  preachers  characterized— Excitement  at 
Tournay — Peter  Gabriel  at  Haarlem— Field-preaching  near  Ant- 
werp—Embarrassment of  tlie  regent- Excitement  at  Antwerp— 

Ui 


1566]  BANQUET  AT  ANTWERP  145 

Pensionary  Wesenbeck  sent  to  Brussels— Orange  at  Antwerp— 
His  patriotic  course— Misrepresentation  of  the  duchess— Intem- 
perate zeal  of  Dr.  Rythovius— Meeting  at  St. -Trond— Conference 
at  Duffel— Louis  of  Nassau  deputed  to  the  regent— Unsatisfactory 
negotiations. 

The  most  remarkable  occurrence  in  the  earlier  part  of 
the  year  1566  was  the  famous  Compromise.  This  docu- 
ment, by  which  the  signers  pledged  themselves  to  op- 
pose the  Inquisition  and  to  defend  each  other  against 
all  consequences  of  such  a  resistance,  was  probably  the 
work  of  Philip  de  Marnix,  Lord  of  Sainte-Aldegonde. 
Much  obscurity,  however,  rests  upon  the  origin  of  this 
league.  Its  foundations  had  already  been  laid  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  preceding  year.  The  nuptials  of 
Parma  with  the  Portuguese  princess  had  been  the  cause 
of  much  festivity,  not  only  in  Brussels,  but  at  Antwerp. 
The  great  commercial  metropolis  had  celebrated  the 
occasion  by  a  magnificent  banquet.  There  had  been 
triumphal  arches,  wreaths  of  flowers,  loyal  speeches, 
generous  sentiments,  in  the  usual  profusion.  The  chief 
ornament  of  the  dinner-table  had  been  a  magnificent 
piece  of  confectionery,  setting  elaborately  forth  the  mis- 
sion of  Count  Mansfeld  with  the  fleet  to  Portugal  to 
fetch  the  bride  from  her  home,  with  exquisitely  finished 
figures  in  sugar— portraits,  it  is  to  be  presumed— of  the 
principal  personages  as  they  appeared  during  the  most 
striking  scenes  of  the  history.^  At  the  very  moment, 
however,  of  these  delectations,  a  meeting  was  held  at 
Brussels  of  men  whose  minds  were  occupied  with  sterner 
stuff  than  sugar- work.  On  the  wedding-day  of  Parma, 
Francis  Junius,  a  dissenting  minister  then  residing  at 
Antwerp,  was  invited  to  Brussels  to  preach  a  sermon 

1  Meteren,  ii.  36. 

VOL.  II.— 10 


146  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

in  the  house  of  Count  Culemburg,  on  the  horse-market 
(now  called  Little  Sablon),  before  a  small  assembly  of 
some  twenty  gentlemen.^ 

This  Francis  Junius,  born  of  a  noble  family  in  Bourges, 
was  the  pastor  of  the  secret  French  congregation  of 
Huguenots  at  Antwerp.  He  was  very  young,  having 
arrived  from  Geneva,  where  he  had  been  educated,  to 
take  charge  of  the  secret  church  when  but  just  turned 
of  twenty  years.^  He  was,  however,  already  celebrated 
for  his  learning,  his  eloquence,  and  his  courage.  Toward 
the  end  of  1565  it  had  ah-eady  become  known  that 
Junius  was  in  secret  understanding  with  Louis  of  Nas- 
sau to  prepare  an  address  to  government  on  the  subject 
of  the  Inquisition  and  edicts.  Orders  were  given  for 
his  arrest.  A  certain  painter  of  Brussels  affected  con- 
version to  the  new  religion,  that  he  might  gain  admis- 
sion to  the  congregation  and  afterward  earn  the  reward 
of  the  informer.  He  played  his  part  so  well  that  he 
was  permitted  to  attend  many  meetings,  in  the  course 
of  which  he  sketched  the  portrait  of  the  preacher,  and 
delivered  it  to  the  duchess  regent,  together  with  minute 
statements  as  to  his  residence  and  daily  habits.  Never- 
theless, with  all  this  assistance,  the  government  could 
not  succeed  in  laying  hands  on  him.  He  escaped  to 
Breda,  and  continued  his  labors  in  spite  of  persecution. 
The  man's  courage  may  be  estimated  from  the  fact  that 
he  preached  on  one  occasion  a  sermon,  advocating  the 
doctrines  of  the  Reformed  Church  with  his  usual  elo- 
quence, in  a  room  overlooking  the  market-place,  where, 
at  the  very  instant,  the  execution  by  fire  of  several 

1  Brandt,  i.  289  sqq.  Ex  vita  F.  Junii  ab  ipso  eonscripta, 
f.  15,  apud  Brandt.  " 

2  Vit.  Junii,  14,  15,  16. 


1566]  THE  FIRST  LEAGUERS  147 

heretics  was  taking  place,  while  the  light  from  the 
flames  in  which  the  brethren  of  their  faith  were  burn- 
ing was  flickering  through  the  glass  windows  of  the 
conventicle.^  Such  was  the  man  who  preached  a  sermon 
in  Culemburg  Palace  on  Parma's  wedding-day.  The 
nobles  who  listened  to  him  were  occupied  with  grave 
discourse  after  conclusion  of  the  religious  exercises. 
Junius  took  no  part  in  their  conversation,  but  in  his 
presence  it  was  resolved  that  a  league  against  the 
*'  barbarous  and  violent  Inquisition  "  should  be  formed, 
and  that  the  confederates  should  mutually  bind  them- 
selves both  within  and  without  the  Netherlands  to  this 
great  purpose.^  Junius,  in  giving  this  explicit  state- 
ment, has  not  mentioned  the  names  of  the  nobles  before 
whom  he  preached.  It  may  be  inferred  that  some  of 
them  were  the  more  ardent  and  the  more  respectable 
among  the  somewhat  miscellaneous  band  by  whom  the 
Compromise  was  afterward  signed. 

At  about  the  same  epoch,  Louis  of  Nassau,  Nicolas 
de  Hammes,  and  certain  other  gentlemen  met  at  the  baths 
of  Spa.  At  this  secret  assembly  the  foundations  of  the 
Compromise  were  definitely  laid.^  A  document  was 
afterward  drawn  up,  which  was  circulated  for  signa- 
tures in  the  early  part  of  1566.     It  is  therefore  a  mis- 

1  Vit.  Junii,  f.  16,  apud  Brandt,  290. 

2  Vit.  Junii,  f.  15,  apud  Brandt,  289. 

3  This  appears  from  the  sentence  pronounced  against  De 
Hammes  (Toison  d'Or)  by  the  Blood-Council  on  the  17th  May, 
1568.  "Charg6  d'avoir  este  ung  des  autheurs  de  la  seditieuse  et 
pemicieuse  conjuration  et  ligue  des  confederez  (qu'ils  appellent 
Compromis)  et  dicelle  premierement  avoir  jecte  les  fondemens  k 
la  fontaine  de  Spa,  aveeq  le  Compte  Loys  de  Nassau  et  aultres  et 
aprSs  environ  le  mois  de  Decembre,  1565,  I'aiTeste  la  signe  et  jure 
en  ceste  vill5  de  Bruxelle  en  sa  maison  et  k  icelle  attire  et  induict 


148  THE  EISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

take  to  suppose  that  this  memorable  paper  was  simul- 
taneously signed  and  sworn  to  at  any  solemn  scene  like 
that  of  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence,  or 
like  some  of  the  subsequent  transactions  in  the  Nether- 
land  revolt,  arranged  purposely  for  dramatic  effect. 
Several  copies  of  the  Compromise  were  passed  secretly 
from  hand  to  hand,  and  in  the  course  of  two  months 
some  two  thousand  signatures  had  been  obtained.^  The 
original  copy  bore  but  three  names,  those  of  Brederode, 
Charles  de  Mansfeld,  and  Louis  of  Nassau.^  The  com- 
position of  the  paper  is  usually  ascribed  to  Sainte- 
Aldegonde,  although  the  fact  is  not  indisputable.^  At 
any  rate,  it  is  very  certain  that  he  was  one  of  the  ori- 
ginators and  main  supporters  of  the  famous  league. 
Sainte-Aldegonde  was  one  of  the  most  accomplished 
men  of  his  age.  He  was  of  ancient  nobility,  as  he 
proved  by  an  abundance  of  historical  and  heraldic  evi- 
dence, in  answer  to  a  scurrilous  pamphlet  in  which  he 
had  been  accused,  among  other  delinquencies,  of  having 
sprung  from  plebeian  blood.  Having  established  his 
"  extraction  from  true  and  ancient  gentlemen  of  Savoy, 
paternally  and  maternally,"  he  rebuked  his  assailants  in 
manly  strain.  '^Even  had  it  been  that  I  was  without 
nobility  of  birth,"  said  he,  "  I  should  be  none  the  less  or 
more  a  virtuous  or  honest  man ;  nor  can  any  one  re- 
proach me  with  having  failed  in  the  point  of  honor  or 
duty.     What  greater  folly  than  to  boast  of  the  virtue 

plusieurs  aultres."— Registre  des  Condamn^s  et  Bannis  a  Cause  des 
Troubles  des  Pays-Bas  dep.  I'an  1568  k  1572,  Cliambre  des 
Comptes,  iii.  MS.  iu  the  Brussels  Archives. 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  400. 

^  Archives  et  Correspondance,  ii.  2-7. 

3  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives  et  Correspondance,  ii.  13. 


1566]  MARNIX  149 

or  gallantry  of  others,  as  do  many  nobles  who,  having 
neither  a  grain  of  virtue  in  their  souls  nor  a  drop  of 
wisdom  in  their  brains,  are  entirely  useless  to  their 
country !  Yet  there  are  such  men,  who,  because  their 
ancestors  have  done  some  valorous  deed,  think  them- 
selves fit  to  direct  the  machinery  of  a  whole  country, 
having  from  their  youth  learned  nothing  but  to  dance 
and  to  spin  like  weathercocks,  with  their  heads  as 
well  as  their  heels."  ^  Certainly  Sainte-Aldegonde  had 
learned  other  lessons  than  these.  He  was  one  of  the 
many-sided  men  who  recalled  the  symmetry  of  antique 
patriots.  He  was  a  poet  of  much  vigor  and  imagination, 
a  prose  writer  whose  style  was  surpassed  by  that  of 
none  of  his  contemporaries,  a  diplomatist  in  whose  tact 
and  delicacy  William  of  Orange  afterward  reposed  in 
the  most  difficult  and  important  negotiations,  an  orator 
whose  discourses  on  many  great  public  occasions  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  Europe,  a  soldier  whose  bravery 
was  to  be  attested  afterward  on  many  a  well-fought 
field,  a  theologian  so  skilful  in  the  polemics  of  divinity 
that,  as  it  will  hereafter  appear,  he  was  more  than  a 
match  for  a  bench  of  bishops  upon  their  own  ground, 
and  a  scholar  so  accomplished  that,  besides  speaking 
and  writing  the  classical  and  several  modern  languages 
with  facility,  he  had  also  translated  for  popular  use  the 
Psalms  of  David  into  vernacular  verse,  and  at  a  very 
late  period  of  his  life  was  requested  by  the  States- 
General  of  the  Republic  to  translate  all  the  Scriptures, 
a  work  the  fulfilment  of  which  was  prevented  by  his 

1  R^ponse  a  un  libelle  fameux  nagueres  publie  contre  Mon- 
seigneur  le  P"  d'Oranges  et  intitule  Lettres  d'un  gentilhomme 
vray  patriote,  etc.  Faiete  du  Mons''  de  S**  Aldegonde.  An  vers : 
chez  Giles  van  den  Rade,  1579. 


150  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

death.i  A  passionate  foe  to  the  Inquisition  and  to  all  the 
abuses  of  the  ancient  Church,  an  ardent  defender  of  civil 
liberty,  it  must  be  admitted  that  he  partook  also  of  the  ty- 
rannical spirit  of  Calvinism.  He  never  rose  to  the  lofty 
heights  to  which  the  spirit  of  the  great  founder  of  the 
commonwealth  was  destined  to  soar,  but  denounced  the 
great  principle  of  religious  liberty  for  all  consciences  as 
godless.  He  was  now  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  having 
been  born  in  the  same  year  with  his  friend  Louis  of 
Nassau.  His  device,  "Repos  ailleurs,"^  finely  typified 
the  restless,  agitated,  and  laborious  life  to  which  he  was 
destined. 

That  other  distinguished  leader  of  the  newly  formed 
league,  Count  Louis,  was  a  true  knight  of  the  olden 
time,  the  very  mirror  of  chivalry.  Gentle,  generous, 
pious ;  making  use,  in  his  tent  before  the  battle,  of  the 
prayers  which  his  mother  sent  him  from  the  home  of 
his  childhood,^  yet  fiery  in  the  field  as  an  ancient  cru- 
sader,—doing  the  work  of  general  and  soldier  with  des- 
perate valor  and  against  any  numbers,— cheerful  and 
steadfast  under  all  reverses,  witty  and  jocund  in  social 
intercourse,  animating  with  his  unceasing  spirits  the 
graver  and  more  foreboding  soul  of  his  brother,  he  was 
the  man  to  whom  the  eyes  of  the  most  ardent  among 
the  Netherland  reformers  were  turned  at  this  early 
epoch,  the  trusty  staff  upon  which  the  great  Prince  of 
Orange  was  to  lean  till  it  was  broken.  As  gay  as  Bre- 
derode,  he  was  unstained  by  his  vices,  and  exercised  a 
boundless  influence  over  that  reckless  personage,  who 
often  protested  that  he  would  "  die  a  poor  soldier  at  his 
feet."  *    The  career  of  Louis  was  destined  to  be  short, 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  iii.  412,  413. 

2  Ibid.  3  Ibid.,  ii.  260,  309.  *  Ibid.,  ii.  416. 


1566]        COUNT  LOUIS  AND    "GOLDEN  FLEECE"         151 

if  reckoned  by  years ;  but  if  by  events,  it  was  to  attain 
almost  a  patriarelial  length.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  he 
had  taken  part  in  the  battle  of  St.-Quentin,  and  when 
once  the  war  of  freedom  opened,  his  sword  was  never  to 
be  sheathed.  His  days  were  filled  with  life,  and  when 
he  fell  into  his  bloody  but  unknown  grave  he  was  to 
leave  a  name  as  distinguished  for  heroic  valor  and  un- 
tiring energy  as  for  spotless  integrity.  He  was  small 
of  stature,  but  well  formed ;  athletic  in  all  knightly  exer- 
cises, with  agreeable  features,  a  dark  laughing  eye,  close- 
clipped  brown  hair,  and  a  peaked  beard. 

"Golden  Fleece,"  as  Nicolas  de  Hammes  was  uni- 
versally denominated,  was  the  illegitimate  scion  of  a 
noble  house.  1  He  was  one  of  the  most  active  of  the  early 
adherents  to  the  league,  kept  the  lists  of  signers  in  his 
possession,  and  scoured  the  country  daily  to  procure 
new  confederates.^  At  the  public  preachings  of  the 
Reformed  religion,  which  soon  after  this  epoch  broke 
forth  throughout  the  Netherlands  as  by  a  common  im- 
pulse, he  made  himself  conspicuous.  He  was  accused 
of  wearing,  on  such  occasions,  the  ensigns  of  the  Fleece 
about  his  neck,  in  order  to  induce  ignorant  people  to 
believe  that  they  might  themselves  legally  follow  when 
they  perceived  a  member  of  that  illustrious  fraternity 
to  be  leading  the  way.^  As  De  Hammes  was  only  an 
official  or  servant  of  that  order,  but  not  a  companion, 
the  seduction  of  the  lieges  by  such  false  pretenses  was 
reckoned  among  the  most  heinous  of  his  offenses.  He 
was  fierce  in  his  hostility  to  the  government,  and  one  of 
those  fiery  spirits  whose  premature  zeal  was  prejudicial 

^  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  399,  note  2. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  400.     Strada,  v.  172. 

3  Registre  des  Coiidainn6s  MS.,  ubi  sup. 


152  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

to  the  cause  of  liberty  and  disheartening  to  the  cautious 
patriotism  of  Orange.  He  was  for  smiting  at  once  the 
gigantic  atrocity  of  the  Spanish  dominion,  without 
waiting  for  the  forging  of  the  weapons  by  which  the 
blows  were  to  be  dealt.  He  forgot  that  men  and  money 
were  as  necessary  as  wrath  in  a  contest  with  the  most 
tremendous  despotism  of  the  world.  "  They  wish,"  he 
wrote  to  Count  Louis,  "that  we  should  meet  these 
hungry  wolves  with  remonstrances,  using  gentle  words, 
while  they  are  burning  and  cutting  off  heads.  Be  it  so, 
then.  Let  us  take  the  pen,  let  them  take  the  sword. 
For  them  deeds,  for  us  words.  We  shall  weep,  they 
will  laugh.  The  Lord  be  praised  for  all ;  but  I  cannot 
write  this  without  tears."  ^  This  nervous  language 
painted  the  situation  and  the  character  of  the  writer. 

As  for  Charles  Mansfeld,  he  soon  fell  away  from  the 
league,  which  he  had  embraced  originally  with  excessive 
ardor,^ 

By  the  influence  of  the  leaders  many  signatures  were 
obtained  during  the  first  two  months  of  the  year.  The 
language  of  the  document  was  such  that  patriotic  Cath- 
olics could  sign  it  as  honestly  as  Protestants.  It  in- 
veighed bitterly  against  the  tyranny  of  "a  heap  of 
strangers,"  who,  influenced  only  by  private  avarice  and 
ambition,  were  making  use  of  an  affected  zeal  for  the 
Catholic  religion  to  persuade  the  king  into  a  violation 
of  his  oaths.  It  denounced  the  refusal  to  mitigate  the 
severity  of  the  edicts.  It  declared  the  Inquisition,  which 
it  seemed  the  intention  of  government  to  fix  permanently 
upon  them,  as  "  iniquitous,  contrary  to  all  laws,  human 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  36,  37. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  303-306,  422.  Groen  v. 
Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  409. 


1566]  SKETCH  OF  THE  COMPROMISE  153 

and  divine,  surpassing  the  greatest  barbarism  which 
was  ever  practised  by  tyrants,  and  as  redounding  to  the 
dishonor  of  God  and  to  the  total  desolation  of  the 
country."  The  signers  protested,  therefore,  that,  "  hav- 
ing a  due  regard  to  their  duties  as  faithful  vassals  of 
his  Majesty,  and  especially  as  noblemen,  and  in  order 
not  to  be  deprived  of  their  estates  and  their  lives  by 
those  who,  under  pretext  of  religion,  wished  to  enrich 
themselves  by  plunder  and  murder,"  they  had  bound 
themselves  to  each  other  by  holy  covenant  and  solemn 
oath  to  resist  the  Inquisition.  They  mutually  promised 
to  oppose  it  in  every  shape,  open  or  covert,  under  what- 
ever mask  it  might  assume,  whether  bearing  the  name 
of  Inquisition,  placard,  or  edict,  "  and  to  extirpate  and 
eradicate  the  thing  in  any  form,  as  the  mother  of  all 
iniquity  and  disorder."  They  protested  before  God 
and  man  that  they  would  attempt  nothing  to  the  dis- 
honor of  the  Lord  or  to  the  diminution  of  the  king's 
grandeur,  majesty,  or  dominion.  They  declared,  on  the 
contrary,  an  honest  purpose  to  "  maintain  the  monarch 
in  his  estate,  and  to  suppress  all  seditions,  tumults, 
monopolies,  and  factions."  They  engaged  to  preserve 
their  confederation,  thus  formed,  forever  inviolable,  and 
to  permit  none  of  its  members  to  be  persecuted  in  any 
manner,  in  body  or  goods,  by  any  proceeding  founded 
on  the  Inquisition,  the  edicts,  or  the  present  league.^ 

It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  the  Compromise  was  in 
its  origin  a  covenant  of  nobles.  It  was  directed  against 
the  foreign  influence  by  which  the  Netherlands  were 
exclusively    governed,    and    against    the    Inquisition, 

1  The  Compromise  has  been  often  printed.  Vide,  e.  g.,  Groen 
V.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  2  sqq.  Foppens,  Supplement  k 
Strada,  ii.  299  sqq.     Bor,  ii.  53,  54. 


154  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

wlietlier  papal,  episcopal,  or  by  edict.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  the  country  was  controlled  entirely  by 
Spanish  masters,  and  that  the  intention  was  to  reduce 
the  ancient  liberty  of  the  Netherlands  into  subjection  to 
a  junta  of  foreigners  sitting  at  Madrid.  Nothing  more 
legitimate  could  be  imagined  than  a  constitutional  re- 
sistance to  such  a  policy. 

The  Prince  of  Orange  had  not  been  consulted  as  to 
the  formation  of  the  league.^  It  was  sufficiently  obvious 
to  its  founders  that  his  cautious  mind  would  find  much 
to  censure  in  the  movement.  His  sentiments  with  re- 
gard to  the  Inquisition  and  the  edicts  were  certainly 
known  to  all  men.  In  the  beginning  of  this  year,  too, 
he  had  addressed  a  remarkable  letter  ^  to  the  duchess,  in 
answer  to  her  written  commands  to  cause  the  Council 
of  Trent,  the  Inquisition,  and  the  edicts,  in  accordance 
with  the  recent  commands  of  the  king,  to  be  published 
and  enforced  throughout  his  government.  Although 
his  advice  on  the  subject  had  not  been  asked,  he  ex- 
pressed his  sense  of  obligation  to  speak  his  mind  on  the 
subject,  preferring  the  hazard  of  being  censured  for  his 
remonstrance  to  that  of  incurring  the  suspicion  of  con- 
nivance at  the  desolation  of  the  land  by  his  silenee.  He 
left  the  question  of  reformation  in  ecclesiastical  morals 
untouched,  as  not  belonging  to  his  vocation.  As  to  the 
Inquisition,  he  most  distinctly  informed  her  Highness 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  ii.  11,  15. 

'^  2it]i  January,  1566.  The  letter  is  published  by  Groen  v. 
Prinsterer,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  16-21,  and  in  Bor,  33,  34.  It  may  be 
found  also  in  Gachard,  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii. 
106  sqq.,  and  in  Reiffenberg,  Corresp.  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  16-20. 

The  original,  entirely  in  the  handwi'iting  of  the  prince,  is  in  thf 
Archives  of  the  State  Council  at  Brussels. 


1566]  OPINIONS  OF  ORANGE  I55 

that  the  hope  which  still  lingered  in  the  popular  mind 
of  escaping  the  permanent  establishment  of  that  institu- 
tion had  alone  prevented  the  utter  depopulation  of  the 
country,  with  entire  subversion  of  its  commercial  and 
manufacturing  industry.  With  regard  to  the  edicts,  he 
temperately  but  forcibly  expressed  the  opinion  that  it 
was  very  hard  to  enforce  those  placards  now  in  their 
rigor,  when  the  people  were  exasperated  and  the  misery 
universal,  inasmuch  as  they  had  frequently  been  modi- 
fied on  former  occasions.  The  king,  he  said,  could  gain 
nothing  but  difficulty  for  himself,  and  would  be  sure  to 
lose  the  affection  of  his  subjects,  by  renewing  the  edicts, 
strengthening  the  Inquisition,  and  proceeding  to  fresh 
executions,  at  a  time  when  the  people,  moved  by  the 
example  of  their  neighbors,  were  naturally  inclined  to 
novelty.  Moreover,  when  by  reason  of  the  daily  in- 
creasing prices  of  grain  a  famine  was  impending  over 
the  land,  no  worse  moment  could  be  chosen  to  enforce 
such  a  policy.  In  conclusion,  he  observed  that  he  was 
at  all  times  desirous  to  obey  the  commands  of  his  Majesty 
and  her  Highness,  and  to  discharge  the  duties  of  "a 
good  Christian."  The  use  of  the  latter  term  is  remark- 
able, as  marking  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  the  prince's 
mind.  A  year  before  he  would  have  said  a  good  Catho- 
lic, but  it  was  during  this  year  that  his  mind  began  to 
be  thoroughly  pervaded  by  religious  doubt,  and  that  the 
great  question  of  the  Reformation  forced  itself,  not  only 
as  a  pohtical,  but  as  a  moral  problem,  upon  him,  which 
he  felt  that  he  could  not  much  longer  neglect  instead  of 
solving. 

Such  were  the  opinions  of  Orange.  He  could  not, 
however,  safely  intrust  the  sacred  interests  of  a  com- 
monwealth to  such  hands  as  those  of  Brederode,— how- 


156  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

ever  deeply  that  enthusiastic  personage  might  drink 
the  health  of  ''  Younker  William,"  as  he  affectionately 
denominated  the  prince,— or  to  "Golden  Fleece,"  or  to 
Charles  Mansfeld,  or  to  that  younger  wild  boar  of 
Ardennes,  Robert  de  la  Marck.  In  his  brother  and  in 
Sainte-Aldegonde  he  had  confidence,  but  he  did  not 
exercise  over  them  that  control  which  he  afterward 
acquired.  His  conduct  toward  the  confederacy  was 
imitated  in  the  main  by  the  other  great  nobles.  The 
covenanters  never  expected  to  obtain  the  signatures  of 
such  men  as  Orange,  Egmont,  Horn,  Meghen,  Berghen, 
or  Montigny,  nor  were  those  eminent  personages  ever 
accused  of  having  signed  the  Compromise,  although 
some  of  them  were  afterward  charged  with  having  pro- 
tected those  who  did  affix  their  names  to  the  document. 
The  confederates  were  originally  found  among  the  lesser 
nobles.  Of  these  some  were  sincere  Catholics,  who 
loved  the  ancient  Church  but  hated  the  Inquisition; 
some  were  fierce  Calvinists  or  determined  Lutherans; 
some  were  troublous  and  adventurous  spirits,  men  of 
broken  fortunes,  extravagant  habits,  and  boundless  de- 
sires, who  no  doubt  thought  that  the  broad  lands  of  the 
Church,  with  their  stately  abbeys,  would  furnish  much 
more  fitting  homes  and  revenues  for  gallant  gentlemen 
than  for  lazy  monks.^  All  were  young,  few  had  any 
prudence  or  conduct,  and  the  history  of  the  league  more 
than  justified  the  disapprobation  of  Orange.  The  nobles 
thus  banded  together  achieved  little  by  their  confed- 
eracy. They  disgraced  a  great  cause  by  their  orgies, 
almost  ruined  it  by  their  inefficiency,  and  when  the  rope 
of  sand  which  they  had  twisted  fell  asunder,  the  people 
had  gained  nothing  and  the  gentry  had  almost  lost  the 
1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1566]      PEUDENT  PHILIP  AND  SILENT  WILLIAM        I57 

confidence  of  the  nation.  These  remarks  apply  to  the 
mass  of  the  confederates  and  to  some  of  the  leaders. 
Louis  of  Nassau  and  Sainte-Aldegonde  were  ever 
honored  and  trusted  as  they  deserved. 

Although  the  language  of  the  Compromise  spoke  of 
the  leaguers  as  nobles,  yet  the  document  was  circulated 
among  burghers  and  merchants  also,  many  of  whom, 
according  to  the  satirical  remark  of  a  Netherland  Catho- 
lic, may  have  been  influenced  by  the  desire  of  writing 
their  names  in  such  aristocratic  company,  and  some  of 
whom  were  destined  to  expiate  such  vainglory  upon  the 
scaffold.^ 

With  such  associates,  therefore,  the  profound  and 
anxious  mind  of  Orange  could  have  little  in  common. 
Confidence  expanding  as  the  numbers  increased,  their 
audacity  and  turbulence  grew  with  the  growth  of  the 
league.  The  language  at  their  wild  banquets  was  as 
hot  as  the  wine  which  confused  their  heads;  yet  the 
prince  knew  that  there  was  rarely  a  festival  in  which 
there  did  not  sit  some  calm,  temperate  Spaniard,  watch- 
ing with  quiet  eye  and  cool  brain  the  extravagant  de- 
meanor, and  listening  with  composure  to  the  dangerous 
avowals  or  bravados  of  these  revelers,  with  the  purpose 
of  transmitting  a  record  of  their  language  or  demonstra- 
tions to  the  inmost  sanctuary  of  Philip's  cabinet  at 
Madrid.2    The  prince  knew,  too,  that  the  king  was  very 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  "Les  faisaut  seoir  le  plus  souvent  au  plus  beau  de  leurs  tables 
par  une  courtoise  mani^re  de  faire  que  nous  avons  de  caresser  les 
Strangers ;  sy  tost  que  le  vin  estoit  monte  au  eerveau  de  nos 
seigneurs  et  gentilshommes  parloient  librement  a  leur  ac- 
eoustum^e  de  toutes  choses,  descouvrant  par  grande  simplesse  ce 
qu'ils  avoient  au  coeur,  sans  eonslderer  que  ees  oiseaux  estoyent  h 
leurs  tables,  lesquels  demeui-ans  tousjours  en  cervelle  notoyent 


158  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

sincere  in  his  determination  to  maintain  the  Inquisition, 
however  dilatory  his  proceedings  might  appear.  He 
was  well  aware  that  an  armed  force  might  be  expected 
ere  long  to  support  the  royal  edicts.  Already  the  prince 
had  organized  that  system  of  espionage  upon  Philip,  by 
which  the  champion  of  his  country  was  so  long  able  to 
circumvent  its  despot.  The  king  left  letters  carefully 
locked  in  his  desk  at  night,  and  unseen  hands  had  for- 
warded copies  of  them  to  William  of  Orange  before  the 
morning.  He  left  memoranda  in  his  pockets  on  retiring 
to  bed,  and  exact  transcripts  of  those  papers  found  their 
way,  likewise,  ere  he  rose,^  to  the  same  watchman  in  the 
Netherlands.  No  doubt  that  an  inclination  for  political 
intrigue  was  a  prominent  characteristic  of  the  prince, 
and  a  blemish  upon  the  purity  of  his  moral  nature. 
Yet  the  dissimulating  policy  of  his  age  he  had  mastered 
only  that  he  might  accomplish  the  noblest  purposes  to 
which  a  great  and  good  man  can  devote  his  life— the 
protection  of  the  liberty  and  the  religion  of  a  whole 
people  against  foreign  tyranny.  His  intrigue  served 
his  country,  not  a  narrow  personal  ambition,  and  it  was 
only  by  such  arts  that  he  became  Philip's  master,  instead 
of  falling  at  once,  like  so  many  great  personages,  a 
blind  and  infatuated  victim.  No  doubt  his  purveyors 
of  secret  information  were  often  destined  fearfully  to 

diligemment  le  propos  des  convivans  jusques  a  remarquer  leurs 
contenanees  pour  en  faire  rapport  a  certains  commis  qu'ils 
appelloyent  auditeurs."— Pontus  Payen  MS.,  liv.  i. 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  :  "Entre  aultres  par  le  Secretaire  Van 
den  Esse,  lequel  abusant  de  la  privault^  du  Roy  son  maistre,  avoit 
(comme  aulcuns  veuUent  dire)  est6  si  temeraire  de  fureter  sa 
poche,  pendant  qu'il  estoit  au  lict,  et  lire  les  lettres  secretes  qu'il 
reeevoit  de  Madame  de  Parme  et  du  Cardinal,  faisant  aprfes 
entendre  le  contenu  au  Prince  d'Orange,"  etc. 


15662  PANIC  159 

atone  for  their  contraband  commerce,  but  they  who 
trade  in  treason  must  expect  to  pay  the  penalty  of  their 
traffic. 

Although,  therefore,  the  great  nobles  held  themselves 
aloof  from  the  confederacy,  yet  many  of  them  gave 
unequivocal  signs  of  their  dissent  from  the  policy 
adopted  by  government.  Marquis  Berghen  wrote  to 
the  duchess,  resigning  his  posts,  on  the  ground  of  his 
inability  to  execute  the  intention  of  the  king  in  the 
matter  of  religion.  Meghen  replied  to  the  same  sum- 
mons by  a  similar  letter.  Egmont  assured  her  that  he 
would  have  placed  his  offices  in  the  king's  hands  in 
Spain,  could  he  have  foreseen  that  his  Majesty  would 
form  such  resolutions  as  had  now  been  proclaimed. 
The  sentiments  of  Orange  were  avowed  in  the  letter  to 
which  we  have  already  alluded.  His  opinions  were 
shared  by  Montigny,  Culemburg,  and  many  others. 
The  duchess  was  almost  reduced  to  desperation.  The 
condition  of  the  country  was  frightful.  The  most  de- 
termined loyalists,  such  as  Berlaymont,  Viglius,  and 
Hopper,  advised  her  not  to  mention  the  name  of  Inquisi- 
tion in  a  conference  which  she  was  obliged  to  hold  with 
a  deputation  from  Antwerp.^  She  feared,  all  feared,  to 
pronounce  the  hated  word.  She  wrote  despaii-ing  letters 
to  Philip,  describing  the  condition  of  the  land  and  her 
own  agony  in  the  gloomiest  colors.  Since  the  arrival 
of  the  royal  orders,  she  said,  things  had  gone  from  bad 
to  worse.  The  king  had  been  ill  advised.  It  was  use- 
less to  tell  the  people  that  the  Inquisition  had  always 
existed  in  the  provinces.  They  maintained  that  it  was 
a  novelty ;  that  the  institution  was  a  more  rigorous  one 
than  the   Spanish   Inquisition,  which,   said  Margaret, 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  386,  387,  397. 


160  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

"  was  most  odious,  as  the  king  knew."  ^  It  was  utterly- 
impossible  to  carry  the  edicts  into  execution.  Nearly 
all  the  governors  of  provinces  had  told  her  plainly  that 
they  would  not  help  to  burn  fifty  or  sixty  thousand 
Netherlanders.2  Thus  bitterly  did  Margaret  of  Parma 
bewail  the  royal  decree ;  not  that  she  had  any  sympathy 
for  the  victims,  but  because  she  felt  the  increasing 
danger  to  the  executioner.  One  of  two  things  it  was 
now  necessary  to  decide  upon— concession  or  armed 
compulsion.  Meantime,  while  Philip  was  slowly  and 
secretly  making  his  levies,  his  sister,  as  well  as  his 
people,  was  on  the  rack.  Of  all  the  seigniors,  not  one 
was  placed  in  so  painful  a  position  as  Egmont.  His 
military  reputation  and  his  popularity  made  him  too 
important  a  personage  to  be  slighted,  yet  he  was  deeply 
mortified  at  the  lamentable  mistake  which  he  had  com- 
mitted. He  now  averred  that  he  would  never  tahe  arms 
against  the  Mng,  but  that  he  would  go  where  man  should 
never  see  him  more.'^ 

Such  was  the  condition  of  the  nobles,  greater  and 
less.  That  of  the  people  could  not  well  be  worse. 
Famine  reigned  in  the  land.*  Emigration,  caused  not 
by  overpopulation,  but  by  persecution,  was  fast  weak- 
ening the  country.  It  was  no  wonder  that  not  only 
foreign  merchants  should  be  scared  from  the  great  com- 
mercial cities  by  the  approaching  disorders,  but  that 
every  industrious  artisan  who  could  find  the  means  of 
escape  should  seek  refuge  among  strangers  wherever  an 
asylum  could  be  found.     That  asylum  was  afforded  by 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  386,  387,  397. 

2  Ibid.  3  Ibid.,  i.  391. 

*  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  1^°.  Correspondance  de  Philippe 
II.,  i.  392. 


1566]  EMIGRATION  TO  ENGLAND  161 

Protestant  England,  who  received  these  intelligent  and 
unfortunate  wanderers  with  cordiality,  and  learned  with 
eagerness  the  lessons  in  mechanical  skill  which  they 
had  to  teach.  Already  thirty  thousand  emigrant  Nether- 
landers  were  established  in  Sandwich,  Norwich,  and 
other  places  assigned  to  them  by  Elizabeth.^  It  had 
always,  however,  been  made  a  condition  of  the  liberty 
granted  to  these  foreigners  for  practising  their  handi- 
work that  each  house  should  employ  at  least  one  Eng- 
lish apprentice.^  ''Thus,"  said  a  Walloon  historian, 
splenetically,  "by  this  regulation,  and  by  means  of 
heavy  duties  on  foreign  manufactures,  have  the  English 
built  up  their  own  fabrics  and  prohibited  those  of  the 
Netherlands.  Thus  have  they  drawn  over  to  their  own 
country  our  skilful  artisans  to  practise  their  industry, 
not  at  home  but  abroad,  and  our  poor  people  are  thus 
losing  the  means  of  earning  their  livelihood.  Thus  has 
cloth-making,  silk-making,  and  the  art  of  dyeing  declined 
in  this  country,  and  would  have  been  quite  extinguished 
but  by  our  wise  countervailing  edicts."  ^  The  writer, 
who  derived  most  of  his  materials  and  his  wisdom  from 
the  papers  of  Councilor  d'Assonleville,  could  hardly 
doubt  that  the  persecution  to  which  these  industrious 
artisans,  whose  sufferings  he  affected  to  deplore,  had 
been  subjected  must  have  had  something  to  do  with 
their  expatriation ;  but  he  preferred  to  ascribe  it  wholly 
to  the  protective  system  adopted  by  England.  In  this 
he  followed  the  opinion  of  his  preceptor.     "  For  a  long 

1  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  V°. 

2  Renom  de  France  MS.  :  "Et  affin  de  faire  croistre  ces 
mestiers  et  artifices  en  Angleterre,  nul  de  ceulx  qui  se  sont  retires 
illecq  ont  peu  faire  mestiers  s'ils  n'avoient  apprentisseurs  Anglois, 
un  pour  le  moings."— i.  c.  iv.  3  Ibid.,  ubi  sup. 

VOL.  II.  — ij 


162  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

time,"  said  Assonleville,  "the  Netherlands  have  been 
the  Indies  to  England ;  and  as  long  as  she  has  them,  she 
needs  no  other.  The  French  try  to  surprise  our  for- 
tresses and  cities;  the  English  make  war  upon  our 
wealth  and  upon  the  purses  of  the  people."  ^  Whatever 
the  cause,  however,  the  current  of  trade  was  already 
turned.  The  cloth-making  of  England  was  already 
gaining  preponderance  over  that  of  the  provinces. 
Vessels  now  went  every  week  from  Sandwich  to  Ant- 
werp, laden  with  silk,  satin,  and  cloth  manufactured  in 
England,  while  as  many  but  a  few  years  before  had 
borne  the  Flemish  fabrics  of  the  same  nature  from  Ant- 
werp to  England.2 

It  might  be  supposed  by  disinterested  judges  that 
persecution  was  at  the  bottom  of  this  change  in  com- 
merce. The  Prince  of  Orange  estimated  that  up  to  this 
period  fifty  thousand  persons  in  the  provinces  had  been 
put  to  death  in  obedience  to  the  edicts.^  He  was  a 
moderate  man,  and  accustomed  to  weigh  his  words.  As 
a  new  impulse  had  been  given  to  the  system  of  butchery ; 
as  it  was  now  sufficiently  plain  that  "  if  the  father  had 
chastised  his  people  with  a  scourge,  the  son  held  a  whip 
of  scorpions " ;  *  as  the  edicts  were  to  be  enforced  with 
renewed  vigor,  it  was  natural  that  commerce  and  man- 
ufactures should  make  their  escape  out  of  a  doomed 
land  as  soon  as  possible,  whatever  system  of  tariffs 
might  be  adopted  by  neighboring  nations. 

A  new  step  had  been  resolved  upon  early  in  the  month 
of  March  by  the   confederates.      A  petition,  or  ''Re- 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  382. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  392. 

3  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  22. 
*  Apologia  d'Orange,  58, 


1566]  THE  REQUEST  163 

quest,"  was  drawn  up,  which  was  to  be  presented  to  the 
duchess  regent  in  a  formal  manner  by  a  large  number 
of  gentlemen  belonging  to  the  league.  This  movement 
was  so  gi*ave,  and  likely  to  be  followed  by  such  formi- 
dable results,  that  it  seemed  absolutely  necessary  for 
Orange  and  his  friends  to  take  some  previous  cognizance 
of  it  before  it  was  finally  arranged.  The  prince  had  no 
power,  nor  was  there  any  reason  why  he  should  have 
the  inclination,  to  prevent  the  measure,  but  he  felt  it 
his  duty  to  do  what  he  could  to  control  the  vehemence 
of  the  men  who  were  moving  so  rashly  forward,  and  to 
take  from  their  manifesto,  as  much  as  possible,  the 
character  of  a  menace. 

For  this  end  a  meeting  ostensibly  for  social  purposes 
and  ''  good  cheer  "  was  held,  in  the  middle  of  March,  at 
Breda,  and  afterward  adjourned  to  Hoogstraaten.  To 
these  conferences  Orange  invited  Egmont,  Horn,  Hoog- 
straaten, Berghen,  Meghen,  Montigny,  and  other  great 
nobles.  Brederode,  Tholouse,  Boxtel,  and  other  mem- 
bers of  the  league  were  also  present.^  The  object  of 
the  prince  in  thus  assembling  his  own  immediate  asso- 
ciates, governors  of  provinces  and  Knights  of  the  Fleece, 
as  well  as  some  of  the  leading  members  of  the  league, 
was  twofold.  It  had  long  been  his  opinion  that  a  tem- 
perate and  loyal  movement  was  still  possible,  by  which 
the  impending  convulsions  might  be  averted.  The  line 
of  policy  which  he  had  marked  out  required  the  assent 
of  the  magnates  of  the  land,  and  looked  toward  the 
convocation  of  the  States-General.     It  was  natural  that 

^  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  38  sqq.  Correspondance 
de  Philippe  II.,  i.  397,  398,  399.  Foppens,  Supplement,  i.  78,  79, 
Proces  d'Egmont.  Compare  Bentivoglio,  ii.  27 ;  Wagenaer,  vi. 
133,  134 ;  Van  der  Haer,  305  sqq. ;  Apologie  d'Orange,  56  sqq. 


164  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

he  should  indulge  in  the  hope  of  being  seconded  by  the 
men  who  were  in  the  same  political  and  social  station 
with  himself.  All,  although  Catholics,  hated  the  Inqui- 
sition. As  Viglius  pathetically  exclaimed,  ''St.  Paul 
himself  would  have  been  unable  to  persuade  these  men 
that  good  fruit  was  to  be  gathered  from  the  Inquisition 
in  the  cause  of  religion."  i  St.  Paul  could  hardly  be 
expected  to  reappear  on  earth  for  such  a  purpose. 
Meantime  the  arguments  of  the  learned  president  had 
proved  powerless  either  to  convince  the  nobles  that 
the  institution  was  laudable  or  to  obtain  from  the 
duchess  a  postponement  in  the  publication  of  the  late 
decrees.  The  Prince  of  Orange,  however,  was  not  able 
to  bring  his  usual  associates  to  his  way  of  thinking. 
The  violent  purposes  of  the  leaguers  excited  the  wrath 
of  the  more  loyal  nobles.  Their  intentions  were  so 
dangerous,  even  in  the  estimation  of  the  prince  himself, 
that  he  felt  it  his  duty  to  lay  the  whole  subject  before 
the  duchess,  although  he  was  not  opposed  to  the  pres- 
entation of  a  modest  and  moderate  request.^  Meghen 
was  excessively  indignant  at  the  plan  of  the  confeder- 
ates, which  he  pronounced  an  insult  to  the  government, 
a  treasonable  attempt  to  overawe  the  duchess  by  a  "  few 
wretched  vagabonds."  ^  He  swore  that  "  he  would  break 
every  one  of  their  heads,  if  the  king  would  furnish  him 
with  a  couple  of  hundred  thousand  florins."^  Orange 
quietly  rebuked  this  truculent  language  by  assuring 
him  both  that  such  a  process  would  be  more  difficult 
than  he  thought,  and  that  he  would  also  find  many  men 
of  great  respectability  among  the  vagabonds. 

J  Vigl.  Epist.  ad  Hopperum,  359. 

2  Apologie  d'Orange,  58. 

3  Van  der  Haer,  306:  "Pauci  nebulones."  *  Ibid. 


1566]  EXAGGERATIONS  165 

The  meeting  separated  at  Hoogstraaten  without  any- 
useful  result,  but  it  was  now  incumbent  upon  the 
prince,  in  his  own  judgment,  to  watch,  and  in  a  measure 
to  superintend,  the  proceedings  of  the  confederates.  By 
his  care  the  contemplated  Request  was  much  altered, 
and  especially  made  more  gentle  in  its  tone.  Meghen 
separated  himself  thenceforth  entirely  from  Orange, 
and  ranged  himself  exclusively  upon  the  side  of  govern- 
ment. Egmont  vacillated,  as  usual,  satisfying  neither 
the  prince  nor  the  duchess.^ 

Margaret  of  Parma  was  seated  in  her  council-chamber 
very  soon  after  these  occurrences,  attended  both  by 
Orange  and  Egmont,  when  the  Count  of  Meghen  entered 
the  apartment.  With  much  precipitation,  he  begged 
that  all  matters  then  before  the  board  might  be  post- 
poned, in  order  that  he  might  make  an  important 
announcement.  He  then  stated  that  he  had  received 
information  from  a  gentleman  on  whose  word  he  could 
rely,  a  very  affectionate  servant  of  the  king,  but  whose 
name  he  had  promised  not  to  reveal,  that  a  very  exten- 
sive conspiracy  of  heretics  and  sectaries  had  been 
formed,  both  within  and  without  the  Netherlands,  that 
they  had  already  a  force  of  thirty-five  thousand  men, 
foot  and  horse,  ready  for  action,  that  they  were  about 
to  make  a  sudden  invasion  and  to  plunder  the  whole 
country,  unless  they  immediately  received  a  formal  con- 
cession of  entire  liberty  of  conscience,  and  that  within 
six  or  seven  days  fifteen  hundred  men-at-arms  would 
make  their  appearance  before  her  Highness.^  These 
ridiculous  exaggerations  of  the  truth  were  confirmed 

1  Van  der  Haer,  309. 

?  Hopper,  Rec.  et  M4m.,  69  sqq.  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  293 
sqq.     Hoofd,  ii.  71,  72. 


166  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

by  Egmont,  who  said  that  he  had  received  similar  in- 
formation from  persons  whose  names  he  was  not  at 
liberty  to  mention,  but"  from  whose  statements  he  could 
announce  that  some  great  tumult  might  be  expected 
every  day.  He  added  that  there  were  among  the  con- 
federates many  who  wished  to  change  their  sovereign, 
and  that  the  chieftains  and  captains  of  the  conspiracy 
were  all  appointed.^  The  same  nobleman  also  laid 
before  the  council  a  copy  of  the  Compromise,^  the  terms 
of  which  famous  document  scarcely  justified  the  extrav- 
agant language  with  which  it  had  been  heralded.  The 
duchess  was  astounded  at  these  communications.  She 
had  already  received,  but  probably  not  yet  read,  a 
letter  from  the  Prince  of  Orange  upon  the  subject,  in 
which  a  moderate  and  plain  statement  of  the  actual 
facts  was  laid  down,  which  was  now  reiterated  by  the 
same  personage  by  word  of  mouth.^  An  agitated  and 
inconclusive  debate  followed,  in  which,  however,  it 
sufficiently  appeared,  as  the  duchess  informed  her 
brother,  that  one  of  two  things  must  be  done  without 
further  delay.  The  time  had  arrived  for  the  govern- 
ment to  take  up  arms,  or  to  make  concessions. 

In  one  of  the  informal  meetings  of  councilors,  now 
held  almost  daily,  on  the  subject  of  the  impending  Re- 
quest, Aremberg,  Meghen,  and  Berlaymont  maintained 
that  the  door  should  be  shut  in  the  face  of  the  peti- 
tioners without  taking  any  further  notice  of  the  petition. 
Berlaymont  suggested  also  that  if  this  course  were  not 

1  Foppens,  Supplement,  293  sqq.,  Letter  of  Margaret  of  Parma 
to  Philippe  II. 

2  Hopper,  70. 

3  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.,  Letter  of  Margaret  of  Parma. 
Hopper,  70. 


1566]  AGITATION  167 

found  advisable,  tte  next  best  thing  would  be  to  allow 
the  confederates  to  enter  the  palace  with  their  Request, 
and  then  to  cut  them  to  pieces  to  the  very  last  man,  by 
means  of  troops  to  be  immediately  ordered  from  the 
frontiers.^  Such  sanguinary  projects  were  indignantly 
rebuked  by  Orange.  He  maintained  that  the  confeder- 
ates were  entitled  to  be  treated  with  respect.  Many  of 
them,  he  said,  were  his  friends,  some  of  them  his  rela- 
tions, and  there  was  no  reason  for  refusing  to  gentle- 
men of  their  rank  a  right  which  belonged  to  the  poorest 
plebeian  in  the  land.  Egmont  sustained  these  views  of 
the  prince  as  earnestly  as  he  had  on  a  previous  occasion 
appeared  to  countenance  the  more  violent  counsels  of 
Megheu.2 

Meantime,  as  it  was  obvious  that  the  demonstration 
on  the  part  of  the  confederacy  was  soon  about  to  be 
made,  the  duchess  convened  a  grand  assembly  of  nota- 
bles, in  which  not  only  all  the  state  and  privy  council- 
ors, but  all  the  governors  and  Knights  of  the  Fleece 
were  to  take  part.  On  the  28th  of  March  ^  this  assembly 
was  held,  at  which  the  whole  subject  of  the  Request, 
together  with  the  proposed  modifications  of  the  edicts 
and  abolition  of  the  Inquisition,  was  discussed.  The 
duchess  also  requested  the  advice  of  the  meeting  whether 
it  would  not  be  best  for  her  to  retire  to  some  other  city, 

1  Pontus  Payen,  ii.,  MS.  :  "Les  Comtes  de  Megne,  d'Aremberg, 
et  S''  de  Berlaymont  estoyent  d'advis  de  leur  fermer  la  porte  au 
visaige  .  .  .  ou  bien  les  laisser  au  Palais  et  puis  les  faire  tailler 
eu  pieces  par  les  gens  de  guerre,  que  I'on  feroit  venir  des  fron- 
tieres."     Compai'e  Van  der  Haer,  307,  308. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS.     Van  der  Haer,  308. 

3  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  304-318,  Letter  of  Margaret  of 
Parma,  3d  April,  1565.  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  403- 
406. 


168  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLTC         [1566 

like  Mons,  wHch  she  had  selected  as  her  stronghold  in 
case  of  extremity.  The  decision  was  that  it  would  be  a 
high-handed  proceeding  to  refuse  the  right  of  petition 
to  a  body  of  gentlemen,  many  of  them  related  to  the 
greatest  nobles  in  the  land;  but  it  was  resolved  that 
they  should  be  required  to  make  their  appearance  with- 
out arms.  As  to  the  contemplated  flight  of  the  duchess, 
it  was  urged,  with  much  reason,  that  such  a  step  would 
cast  disgrace  upon  the  government,  and  that  it  would 
be  a  sufficiently  precautionary  measure  to  strengthen 
the  guards  at  the  city  gates— not  to  prevent  the  entrance 
of  the  petitioners,  but  to  see  that  they  were  unaccom- 
panied by  an  armed  force.  It  had  been  decided  that 
Count  Brederode  should  present  the  petition  to  the 
duchess  at  the  head  of  a  deputation  of  about  three  hun- 
dred gentlemen.  The  character  of  the  nobleman  thus 
placed  foremost  on  such  an  important  occasion  has 
been  sufficiently  made  manifest.  He  had  no  qualities 
whatever  but  birth  and  audacity  to  recommend  him  as 
a  leader  for  a  political  party.  It  was  to  be  seen  that 
other  attributes  were  necessary  to  make  a  man  useful 
in  such  a  position,  and  the  count's  deficiencies  soon 
became  lamentably  conspicuous.  He  was  the  lineal 
descendant  and  representative  of  the  old  sovereign 
counts  of  Holland.  Five  hundred  years  before  his 
birth,  his  ancestor  Sikko,  younger  brother  of  Dirk  III, 
had  died,  leaving  two  sons,  one  of  whom  was  the  first 
Baron  of  Brederode.^  A  descent  of  five  centuries  in 
unbroken  male  succession  from  the  original  sovereigns 
of  Holland  gave  him  a  better  genealogical  claim  to  the 
provinces  than  an}'-  which  Philip  of  Spain  could  assert 
through  the  usurping  house  of  Burgundy.     In  the  ap- 

1  Wagenaer,  ii.  150. 


1566]  BREDERODE  169 

proaeliing  tumults  lie  hoped  for  an  opportunity  of  again 
asserting  the  ancient  honors  of  his  name.  He  was  a 
sworn  foe  to  Spaniards  and  to  "  water  of  the  fountain."  ^ 
But  a  short  time  previously  to  this  epoch  he  had  writ- 
ten to  Louis  of  Nassau,  then  lying  ill  of  a  fever,  in  order 
gravely  to  remonstrate  with  him  on  the  necessity  of 
substituting  wine  for  water  on  all  occasions,^  and  it  will 
be  seen  in  the  sequel  that  the  wine-cup  was  the  great 
instrument  on  which  he  relied  for  effecting  the  deliver- 
ance of  the  country.  Although  ''  neither  bachelor  nor 
chancellor,"  ^  as  he  expressed  it,  he  was  supposed  to  be 
endowed  with  ready  eloquence  and  mother-wit.*  Even 
these  gifts,  however,  if  he  possessed  them,  were  often 
found  wanting  on  important  emergencies.  Of  his 
courage  there  was  no  question,  but  he  was  not  destined 
to  the  death  either  of  a  warrior  or  a  martyr.  Head- 
long, noisy,  debauched,  but  brave,  kind-hearted,  and 
generous,  he  was  a  fitting  representative  of  his  an- 
cestors, the  hard-fighting,  hard-drinking,  crusading,  free- 
booting  sovereigns  of  Holland  and  Friesland,  and  would 
himself  have  been  more  at  home  and  more  useful  in  the 
eleventh  century  than  in  the  sixteenth. 

It  was  about  six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  on  the  third 
day  of  April  (1566),  that  the  long-expected  cavalcade  at 
last  entered  Brussels.^  An  immense  concourse  of  citi- 
zens of  all  ranks  thronged  around  the  noble  confederates 
as  soon  as  they  made  their  appearance.     They  were 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  i.  397. 

2  Ibid.  -i  Ibid.,  ii.  95. 

*  "Ingenti  verborum  factorumque  audacia."— Van  der  Haer, 
308. 

5  Bor,  ii.  58.  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  337.  Correspondanee 
de  Philippe  II.,  i.  403-406. 


170  THE  RISE   OF   THE   DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

about  two  hundred  in  number,  all  on  horseback,  with 
pistols  in  their  holsters,  and  Brederode,  tall,  athletic, 
and  martial  in  his  bearing,  with  handsome  features  and 
fair  curling  locks  upon  his  shoulders,  seemed  an  ap- 
propriate chieftain  for  that  band  of  Batavian  chivalry.^ 
The  procession  was  greeted  with  frequent  demonstra- 
tions of  applause  as  it  wheeled  slowly  through  the  city 
till  it  reached  the  mansion  of  Orange  Nassau.  Here 
Brederode  and  Count  Louis  alighted,  while  the  rest  of 
the  company  dispersed  to  different  quarters  of  the  town. 

'^  They  thought  that  I  should  not  come  to  Brussels," 
said  Brederode,  as  he  dismounted.  '^  Very  well,  here  I 
am ;  and  perhaps  I  shall  depart  in  a  different  manner."  ^ 
In  the  course  of  the  next  day,  Counts  Culemburg  and 
Van  den  Berg  entered  the  city  with  one  hundred  other 
cavaliers. 

On  the  morning  of  the  5th  of  April  the  confederates 
were  assembled  at  the  Culemburg  mansion,  which  stood 
on  the  square  called  the  Sablon,^  within  a  few  minutes' 
walk  of  the  palace.  A  straight,  handsome  street  led 
from  the  house  along  the  summit  of  the  hill  to  the 
splendid  residence  of  the  ancient  dukes  of  Brabant, 
then  the  abode  of  Duchess  Margaret.  At  a  little  before 
noon  the  gentlemen  came  forth,  marching  on  foot,  two 
by  two,  to  the  number  of  three  hundred.     Nearly  all 

1  "Hy  is  geweest  een  man  van  lange  stature,  rosagtig  van 
aengesicht,  met  blond  gekrult  haar,  wel  gemaekt  van  lijf  en  van 
leden  .  .  .  ont  vert  saegt  en  klock  ter  wapenen,"  etc.— Bor,  iii. 
168''. 

2  "Eh  "bien,  j'y  suis,  et  j'en  sortirai  d'une  autre  mani^re,  peut- 
dtre." — Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  403-406. 

3  The  site  of  the  Culemburg  mansion  was  afterward  occupied 
by  the  church  of  tlie  "Carmes  d4chauss6s,"  upon  the  ruins  of 
which  a  maison  de  detention  has  risen. 


1566]         PEOCESSION  OF  THE  CONFEDERATES  171 

were  young,  many  of  them  bore  the  most  ancient  his- 
torical names  of  their  country',  every  one  was  arrayed 
in  magnificent  costume.^  It  was  regarded  as  ominous 
that  the  man  who  led  the  procession,  Philip  de  Bailleul, 
was  lame.  The  line  was  closed  by  Brederode  and  Count 
Louis,  who  came  last,  walking  arm  in  arm.  An  im- 
mense crowd  was  collected  in  the  square  in  front  of  the 
palace  to  welcome  the  men  who  were  looked  upon  as 
the  deliverers  of  the  land  from  Spanish  tyranny,  from 
the  eardinalists,  and  from  the  Inquisition.  They  were 
received  with  deafening  huzzas  and  clappings  of  hands 
by  the  assembled  populace.  As  they  entered  the  council- 
chamber,  passing  through  the  great  hall  where  ten 
years  before  the  emperor  had  given  away  his  crowns, 
they  found  the  emperor's  daughter  seated  in  the  chair 
of  state,  and  surrounded  by  the  highest  personages  of 
the  country.  The  emotion  of  the  duchess  was  evident 
as  the  procession  somewhat  abruptly  made  its  appear- 
ance ;  nor  was  her  agitation  diminished  as  she  observed 
among  the  petitioners  many  relatives  and  retainers  of 
the  Orange  and  Egmont  houses,  and  saw  friendly 
glances  of  recognition  exchanged  between  them  and 
their  chiefs.^ 

As  soon  as  all  had  entered  the  senate-room,  Brederode 
advanced,  made  a  low  obeisance,  and  spoke  a  brief 
speech.^  He  said  that  he  had  come  thither  with  his 
colleagues  to  present  a  humble  petition  to  her  High- 
ness. He  alluded  to  the  reports  which  had  been  rife 
that  they  had  contemplated  tumult,  sedition,  foreign 
conspiracies,  and,  what  was  more  abominable  than  all, 

1  Pontus  Payen,  ii.,  MS.  2  i^jjd. 

3  According  to  Viglius,  he  read  the  speech :  "ex  scripto  pauca 
prsefatus."— Ep.  ad  Hopper,  vii.  358. 


172  THE  EISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

a  change  of  sovereign.  He  denounced  sucli  statements 
as  calumnies,  begged  the  duchess  to  name  the  men  who 
had  thus  aspersed  an  honorable  and  loyal  company,  and 
called  upon  her  to  inflict  exemplary  punishment  upon 
the  slanderers.  "With  these  prefatory  remarks  he  pre- 
sented the  petition.  The  famous  document  was  then 
read  aloud.^  Its  tone  was  sufficiently  loyal,  particularly 
in  the  preamble,  which  was  filled  with  protestations  of 
devotion  to  both  king  and  duchess.  After  this  conven- 
tional introduction,  however,  the  petitioners  proceeded 
to  state,  very  plainly,  that  the  recent  resolutions  of  his 
Majesty  with  regard  to  the  edicts  and  the  Inquisition 
were  likely  to  produce  a  general  rebellion.  They  had 
hoped,  they  said,  that  a  movement  would  be  made  by 
the  seigniors  or  by  the  estates  to  remedy  the  evil  by 
striking  at  its  cause,  but  they  had  waited  in  vain.  The 
danger,  on  the  other  hand,  was  augmenting  every  day, 
universal  sedition  was  at  the  gate,  and  they  had  therefore 
felt  obliged  to  delay  no  longer,  but  come  forward  the 
first  and  do  their  duty.  They  professed  to  do  this  with 
more  freedom,  because  the  danger  touched  them  very 
nearly.  They  were  the  most  exposed  to  the  calamities 
which  usually  spring  from  civil  commotions,  for  their 
houses  and  lands  situate  in  the  open  fields  were  exposed 
to  the  pillage  of  all  the  world.  Moreover,  there  was  not 
one  of  them,  whatever  his  condition,  who  was  not  liable 
at  any  moment  to  be  executed  under  the  edicts,  at  the 
false  complaint  of  the  first  man  who  wished  to  obtain 
his  estate,  and  who  chose  to  denounce  him  to  the  in- 
quisitor, at  whose  mercy  were  the  Kves  and  property  of 

1  It  has  been  often  printed.  Vide,  e.  g.,  Groen  v.  Prinst., 
Archives,  ii.  80-84;  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  318-323;  Bor,  ii. 
58,  59 ;  et  mult.  al. 


1566]  THE  PRESENTATION  173 

all.  They  therefore  begged  the  duchess  regent  to  de- 
spatch an  envoy  on  their  behalf,  who  should  humbly 
implore  his  Majesty  to  abolish  the  edicts.  In  the  mean- 
time they  requested  her  Highness  to  order  a  general 
surcease  of  the  Inquisition  and  of  all  executions  until 
the  king's  further  pleasure  was  made  known,  and  until 
new  ordinances,  made  by  his  Majesty  with  advice  and 
consent  of  the  States-General  duly  assembled,  should  be 
established.  The  petition  terminated  as  it  had  com- 
menced, with  expressions  of  extreme  respect  and  devoted 
loyalty. 

The  agitation  of  Duchess  Margaret  increased  very 
perceptibly  during  the  reading  of  the  paper.  When  it 
was  finished,  she  remained  for  a  few  minutes  quite 
silent,  with  tears  rolling  down  her  cheeks. '^  As  soon  as 
she  could  overcome  her  excitement,  she  uttered  a  few 
words  to  the  effect  that  she  would  advise  with  her  coun- 
cilors and  give  the  petitioners  such  answer  as  should 
be  found  suitable.  The  confederates  then  passed  out 
from  the  council-chamber  into  the  grand  hall,  each 
individual,  as  he  took  his  departure,  advancing  toward 
the  duchess  and  making  what  was  called  the  "  caracole," 
in  token  of  reverence.  There  was  thus  ample  time  to 
contemplate  the  whole  company,  and  to  count  the  num- 
bers of  the  deputation.2 

After  this  ceremony  had  been  concluded  there  was 
much  earnest  debate  in  the  council.     The  Prince  of 

1  "  Madame  la  Duchesse  se  trouva  de  prime  face  fort  troubl^e 
.  .  .  demeura  bonne  espace  de  temps  sans  dire  mot,  ne  pouvant 
contenir  les  larmes  que  I'on  voioit  couller  de  sa  face,  tesmoignage 
certain  de  la  tristesse  qu'enduroit  son  esprit." — Pontus  Payen,  ii., 
MS. 

2  "  Tournoyans  et  faisans  la  caracole  devant  la  dite  Dame," 
etc.— Pontus  Payen  MS. 


174  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

Orange  addressed  a  few  words  to  the  duchess,  with  the 
view  of  calming  her  irritation.  He  observed  that  the 
confederates  were  no  seditious  rebels,  but  loyal  gentle- 
men, well  born,  well  connected,  and.  of  honorable  char- 
acter. They  had  been  influenced,  he  said,  by  an  honest 
desire  to  save  their  country  from  impending  danger — 
not  by  avarice  or  ambition.  Egmont  shrugged  his 
shoulders,^  and  observed  that  it  was  necessary  for  him 
to  leave  the  court  for  a  season,  in  order  to  make  a  visit 
to  the  baths  of  Aix  for  an  inflammation  which  he  had 
in  the  leg.^  It  was  then  that  Berlaymont,  according  to 
the  account  which  has  been  sanctioned  by  nearly  every 
contemporary  writer,  whether  Catholic  or  Protestant, 
uttered  the  gibe  which  was  destined  to  become  immortal 
and  to  give  a  popular  name  to  the  confederacy.  ''  What, 
madam !  "  he  is  reported  to  have  cried  in  a  passion,  "  is 
it  possible  that  your  Highness  can  entertain  fears  of 
these  beggars  (gueux)  ?  Is  it  not  obvious  what  manner 
of  men  they  are?  They  have  not  had  wisdom  enough 
to  manage  their  own  estates,  and  are  they  now  to  teach 
the  king  and  your  Highness  how  to  govern  the  country  ? 
By  the  living  God,  if  my  advice  were  taken,  their  peti- 
tion should  have  a  cudgel  for  a  commentary,  and  we 
would  make  them  go  down  the  steps  of  the  palace  a 
great  deal  faster  than  they  mounted  them  !  "  ^ 

The  Count  of  Meghen  was  equally  violent  in  his  lan- 

1  "En  haussant  les  ^paules  a  I'ltalienne,"  etc.— Pontiis  Payen 
MS. 

2  Ibid.     Compare  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  345 ;  i.  68. 

3  "  Le  Sr.  de  Berlaymont  .  .  .  pronon^a  par  grande  colere  les 
parolles  m^morables  que  firent  changer  de  nom  aux  gentilshommes 
conf^d^rez.  .  .  .  Et  comment,  Madame,  votre  Alteze  at  elle  crainte 
de  ces  gueux?  .  .  .  Par  le  Dieu  vivant,  qui  croirait  mon  conseil 
leur  Requeste  seroit  appostill^e  a  belles  bastonnades,  et  les  f  erions 


1566]  BEGGARS  175 

guage.  Aremberg  was  for  ordering  ''  their  reverences  the 
confederates "  to  quit  Brussels  without  delay.^  The 
conversation,  carried  on  in  so  violent  a  key,  might  not 
unnaturally  have  been  heard  by  such  of  the  gentlemen 
as  had  not  yet  left  the  grand  hall  adjoining  the  council- 
chamber.  The  meeting  of  the  council  was  then  ad- 
journed for  an  hour  or  two,  to  meet  again  in  the  after- 
noon, for  the  purpose  of  deciding  deliberately  upon  the 
answer  to  be  given  to  the  Request.  Meanwhile  many 
of  the  confederates  were  swaggering  about  the  streets, 
talking  very  bravely  of  the  scene  which  had  just  oc- 
curred, and,  it  is  probable,  boasting  not  a  little  of  the 
effect  which  their  demonstration  would  produce.^  As 
they  passed  by  the  house  of  Berlaymont,  that  nobleman, 
standing  at  his  window  in  company  with  Count  Arem- 
berg, is  said  to  have  repeated  his  jest.  ''  There  go  our 
fine  beggars  again,"  said  he.  *'  Look,  I  pray  you,  with 
what  bravado  they  are  passing  before  us !  "  ^ 

descendre  les  degr^s  de  la  court  plus  vistement  qu'ils  les  ont 
montes."— Pontus  Payen,  ii.,  MS.  ^  Ibid. 

2  "  AUerent  f aire  la  piaffe  par  la  ville  .  .  .  repartis  en  di verses 
bandes,"  etc.— Ibid. 

3  "Voila  1108  beaux  gueux,"  dict-il.  "  Regardez,  je  vous  prie, 
avec  quelle  bravade  ils  passent  devant  nous."— Ibid. 

Notwithstanding  the  skepticism  of  M.  Gaehard  (Note  sur 
I'origine  du  nom  de  Gueux,  t.  xiii.  des  Bulletins  de  la  Com.  Roy. 
d'Histoire),  it  is  probable  that  the  Seigneur  de  Berlaymont  will 
retain  the  reputation  of  originating  the  famous  name  of  the  "  beg- 
gars." M.  Gaehard  cites  Wesenbeek,  Bor,  Le  Petit,  Meteren, 
among  contemporaries,  and  Strada  and  Van  der  Vynckt  among 
later  writers,  as  having  sanctioned  the  anecdote  in  which  the  taunt 
of  Berlaymont  is  recorded.  The  learned  and  acute  critic  is  dis- 
posed to  question  the  accuracy  of  the  report,  both  upon  a  priori 
grounds  and  because  there  is  no  mention  made  of  the  circumstance 
either  in  the  official  or  confidential  correspondence  of  Duchesa 


176  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

On  the  6th  of  April,  Brederode,  attended  by  a  large 
number  of  his  companions,  again  made  his  appearance 
at  the  palace.  He  then  received  the  petition,  which  was 
returned  to  him  with  an  apostil,  or  commentary,  to  this 
effect :  Her  Highness  would  despatch  an  envoy  for  the 
purpose  of  inducing  his  Majesty  to  grant  the  Request. 
Everything  worthy  of  the  king's  unaffected  (naive)  and 
customary  benignity  might  be  expected  as  to  the  result. 
The  duchess  had  already,  with  the  assistance  of  the 
state  and  privy  councilors,  Fleece  Knights  and  gov- 
ernors, commenced  a  project  for  moderating  the  edicts, 
to  be  laid  before  the  king.  As  her  authority  did  not 
allow  her  to  suspend  the  Inquisition  and  placards,  she 
was  confident  that  the  petitioners  would  be  satisfied 
with  the  special  application  about  to  be  made  to  the 
king.  Meantime  she  would  give  orders  to  all  inquis- 
itors that  they  should  proceed  "  modestly  and  discreetly  " 
in  their  office,  so  that  no  one  would  have  cause  to  com- 
plain. Her  Highness  hoped  likewise  that  the  gentlemen 
on  their  part  would  conduct  themselves  in  a  loyal  and 

Margaret  with  the  king.  It  is  possible,  however,  that  the  duchess 
in  her  agitation  did  not  catch  the  expression  of  Berlaymont,  or  did 
not  understand  it,  or  did  not  think  it  worth  while  to  chronicle  it 
if  she  did.  It  must  be  remembered  that  she  was  herself  not  very- 
familiar  with  the  French  language,  and  that  she  was  writing  to  a 
man  who  thought  that  "pistolle  meant  some  kind  of  knife."  She 
certainly  did  not  and  could  not  report  everything  said  upon  that 
memorable  occasion.  On  the  other  hand,  some  of  the  three  hun- 
dred gentlemen  present  might  have  heard  and  understood  better 
than  Madame  de  Parma  the  sarcasm  of  the  finance  minister, 
whether  it  were  uttered  upon  their  arrival  in  the  council-chamber, 
or  during  their  withdrawal  into  the  hall.  The  testimony  of  Pontus 
Payen— a  contemporary  almost  always  well  informed,  and  one 
whose  position  as  a  Catholic  Walloon,  noble  and  oflficial,  neces- 
sarily brought  him  into  contact  with  many  personages  engaged 


1566]  APOSTILS  AND  EEJOINDERS  177 

satisfactory  manner,  thus  proving  that  they  had  no 
intention  to  make  innovations  in  the  ancient  religion  of 
the  country.^ 

Upon  the  next  day  but  one,  Monday,  8th  of  April, 
Brederode,  attended  by  a  number  of  the  confederates, 
again  made  his  appearance  at  the  palace  for  the  purpose 
of  delivering  an  answer  to  the  apostil.  In  this  second 
paper  the  confederates  rendered  thanks  for  the  prompt 
reply  which  the  duchess  had  given  to  their  Request,  ex- 
pressed regrets  that  she  did  not  feel  at  liberty  to  sus- 
pend the  Inquisition,  and  declared  their  confidence  that 
she  would  at  once  give  such  orders  to  the  inquisitors 
and  magistrates  that  prosecutions  for  religious  matters 
should  cease,  until  the  king's  further  pleasure  should  be 
declared.  They  professed  themselves  desirous  of  main- 
taining whatever  regulations  should  be  thereafter  estab- 
lished by  his  Majesty,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of 
the  States-General,  for  the  security  of  the  ancient  re- 
ligion, and  promised  to  conduct  themselves  generally  in 
such  wise  that  her  Highness  would  have  every  reason 

in  the  transactions  which  he  describes— is  worthy  of  much  respect. 
It  is  to  be  observed,  too,  that  this  manuscript  alludes  to  a  repeti- 
tion by  Berlaymont  of  his  famous  sarcasm  upon  the  same  day.  To 
the  names  of  contemporary  historians  cited  by  M.  Gachard  may 
be  added  those  of  Van  der  Haer  (ii.  314)  and  of  two  foreign  writers, 
President  de  Thou  (Hist.  Universelle,  v.  lib.  xx.  216)  and  Cardi- 
nal Bentivoglio  (Guerra  di  Fiandra,  ii.  32).  Hoofd,  not  a  con- 
temporary, certainly,  but  bom  within  four  or  five  years  of  the 
event,  relates  the  anecdote,  but  throws  a  doubt  upon  its  accuracy 
(Hist.,  ii.  77).  Those  inclined  to  acquit  the  baron  of  having  per- 
petrated the  immortal  witticism  will  give  him  the  benefit  of  the 
doubt  if  they  think  it  a  reasonable  one.  That  it  is  so,  they  have 
the  high  authority  of  M.  Gachard  and  of  the  Provost  Hoofd. 

1  Foppens,  324  sqq.     Groen  v.  Prinst.,  ii.  84  sqq.     Strada,  v. 
186.     Bor,  ii.  59.     Hopper,  74,  75. 
VOL.  II.— 12 


178  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

to  be  satisfied  with  them.  They,  moreover,  requested 
that  the  duchess  would  cause  the  petition  to  be  printed 
in  authentic  form  by  the  government  printer.  ^ 

The  admission  that  the  confederates  would  maintain 
the  ancient  religion  had  been  obtained,  as  Margaret 
informed  her  brother,  through  the  dexterous  manage- 
ment of  Hoogstraaten,  without  suspicion  on  the  part  of 
the  petitioners  that  the  proposition  for  such  a  declara- 
tion came  from  her.^ 

The  duchess  replied  by  word  of  mouth  to  the  second 
address  thus  made  to  her  by  the  confederates  that  she 
could  not  go  beyond  the  apostil  which  she  had  put  on 
record.  She  had  already  caused  letters  for  the  inquisi- 
tors and  magistrates  to  be  drawn  up.  The  minutes  for 
those  instructions  should  be  laid  before  the  confederates 
by  Count  Hoogstraaten  and  Secretary  Berty.  As  for 
the  printing  of  their  petition,  she  was  willing  to  grant 
their  demand,  and  would  give  orders  to  that  effect.^ 

The  gentlemen,  having  received  this  answer,  retired 
into  the  great  hall.  After  a  few  minutes'  consultation, 
however,  they  returned  to  the  council-chamber,  where 
the  Seigneur  d'Esquerdes,  one  of  their  number,  addressed 
a  few  parting  words,  in  the  name  of  his  associates,  to 
the  regent,  concluding  with  a  request  that  she  would 
declare  the  confederates  to  have  done  no  act,  and  made 
no  demonstration,  inconsistent  with  their  duty  and  with 
a  perfect  respect  for  his  Majesty. 

To  this  demand  the  duchess  answered  somewhat  dryly 
that  she  could  not  be  judge  in  such  a  cause.     Time  and 

1  Bor,  ii.  60.  Hopper,  74,  75.  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  ii. 
86,  87.     Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  333. 

2  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  339,  Letter  of  Margaret  of  Parma. 

3  Ibid.,  ii.  335,  336.     Bor,  ii.  60,  61. 


1566]       THE  BANQUET   AT   CULEMBURG  HOUSE  179 

their  future  deeds,  she  observed,  could  only  bear  witness 
as  to  their  purposes.  As  for  declarations  from  her,  they 
must  be  satisfied  with  the  apostil  which  they  had  already 
received.! 

With  this  response,  somewhat  more  tart  than  agree- 
able, the  nobles  were  obliged  to  content  themselves,  and 
they  accordingly  took  their  leave. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  they  had  been  disposed  to 
slide  rather  cavalierly  over  a  good  deal  of  ground  to- 
ward the  great  object  which  they  had  in  view.  Cer- 
tainly the  petitio  principii  was  a  main  feature  of  their 
logic.  They  had,  in  their  second  address,  expressed  per- 
fect confidence  as  to  two  very  considerable  concessions. 
The  duchess  was  practically  to  suspend  the  Inquisition, 
although  she  had  declared  herself  without  authority  for 
that  purpose.  The  king,  who  claimed,  de  jure  and  de 
factOj  the  whole  legislative  power,  was  thenceforth  to 
make  laws  on  religious  matters  by  and  with  the  consent 
of  the  States-General.  Certainly  these  ends  were  very 
laudable,  and  if  a  civil  and  religious  revolution  could 
have  been  effected  by  a  few  gentlemen  going  to  court 
in  fine  clothes  to  present  a  petition,  and  by  sitting  down 
to  a  tremendous  banquet  afterward,  Brederode  and  his 
associates  were  the  men  to  accomplish  the  task.  Un- 
fortunately, a  sea  of  blood  and  long  years  of  conflict  lay 
between  the  nation  and  the  promised  land  which  for  a 
moment  seemed  so  nearly  within  reach. 

Meantime  the  next  important  step  in  Brederode's  eyes 
was  a  dinner.  He  accordingly  invited  the  confederates 
to  a  magnificent  repast  which  he  had  ordered  to  be 
prepared  in  the  Culemburg  mansion.  Three  hun- 
dred guests  sat  down,  upon  the  8th  of  April,  to  this 

1  Bor,  Hoofci,  Strada,  ubj  sup. 


180  THE   RISE   OP   THE   DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

luxurious  banquet,  which  was  destined  to  become  his- 
torical.^ 

The  board  glittered  with  silver  and  gold.  The  wine 
circulated  with  more  than  its  usual  rapidity  among  the 
band  of  noble  bacchanals,  who  were  never  weary  of 
drinking  the  healths  of  Brederode,  of  Orange,  and  of 
Egmont.  It  was  thought  that  the  occasion  imperiously 
demanded  an  extraordinary  carouse,  and  the  political 
events  of  the  past  three  days  lent  an  additional  excite- 
ment to  the  wine.  There  was  an  earnest  discussion  as 
to  an  appropriate  name  to  be  given  to  their  confederacy. 
Should  they  call  themselves  the  "  Society  of  Concord," 
the  restorers  of  lost  liberty,  or  by  what  other  attractive 
title  should  the  league  be  baptized?  Brederode  was, 
however,  already  prepared  to  settle  the  question.  He 
knew  the  value  of  a  popular  and  original  name ;  he  pos- 
sessed the  instinct  by  which  adroit  partizans  in  every 
age  have  been  accustomed  to  convert  the  reproachful 
epithets  of  their  opponents  into  watchwords  of  honor, 
and  he  had  already  made  his  preparations  for  a  star- 
tling theatrical  effect.  Suddenly,  amid  the  din  of  voices, 
he  arose,  with  all  his  rhetorical  powers  at  command. 
He  recounted  to  the  company  the  observations  which 
the  Seigneur  de  Berlaymont  was  reported  to  have  made 
to  the  duchess  upon  the  presentation  of  the  Request, 
and  the  name  which  he  had  thought  fit  to  apply  to  them 
collectively.2    Most  of  the  gentlemen  then  heard  the 

1  Strada,  v.  186-188.  Hoofd,  ii.  77.  Bentivoglio,  ii.  32. 
Van  der  Vynckt,  i.  265-267. 

2  Pontus  Payen,  ii.,  MS. 

The  manuscript  entitled  "Pieces  coneemant  les  troubles  des 
Pays-Bas,"  belonging  to  the  Gerard  Collection  in  the  Archives  of 
The  Hague,  and  ascribed  to  Weyenburg,  gives  a  similar  account, 


1566]  "VIVENT  LES  GUEUX!"  181 

memorable  sarcasm  for  the  first  time.  Great  was  the 
indignation  of  all  that  the  state  councilor  should  have 
dared  to  stigmatize  as  beggars  a  band  of  gentlemen 
with  the  best  blood  of  the  land  in  their  veins.  Brede- 
rode,  on  the  contrary,  smoothing  their  anger,  assured 
them  with  good  humor  that  nothing  could  be  more  for- 
tunate. "  They  call  us  beggars !  "  said  he.  "  Let  us  ac- 
cept the  name.  We  will  contend  with  the  Inquisition, 
but  remain  loyal  to  the  king,  even  till  compelled  to 
wear  the  beggar's  sack." 

He  then  beckoned  to  one  of  his  pages,  who  brought 
him  a  leathern  wallet,  such  as  was  worn  at  that  day  by 
professional  mendicants,  together  with  a  large  wooden 
bowl,  which  also  formed  part  of  their  regular  appurte- 
nances. Brederode  immediately  hung  the  wallet  around 
his  neck,  filled  the  bowl  with  wine,  lifted  it  with  both 
hands,  and  drained  it  at  a  draught.  "Long  live  the 
beggars ! "  he  cried,  as  he  wiped  his  beard  and  set  the 
bowl  down.  ''  Vivent  les  gueux !  "  Then  for  the  first 
time,  from  the  lips  of  those  reckless  nobles,  rose  the 
famous  cry  which  was  so  often  to  ring  over  land  and 
sea,  amid  blazing  cities,  on  blood-stained  decks,  through 
the  smoke  and  carnage  of  many  a  stricken  field.     The 

furnishing,  although  Berlaymont's  name  is  not  actually  mentioned, 
an  additional  contemporary  authority  to  the  accuracy  of  the  com- 
monly received  narrative.  "Le  Sg""  de  Brederode  fit  un  festin 
magnifique,  oh  se  trouverent  300  gentilshommes,  lesquels  se  firent 
appeUcr  gtieulx,  ne  S5ay  I'oceasion  pourquoy,  aultrement  qu'aulcuns 
disent  que  le  source  et  origine  en  seroit  qu'en  presentant  leur 
req**,  un  chevalier  de  Vordre  des  principaidx  du  conseil  de  son  alteze 
eust  a  dire,  '  Madame,  ne  craignez  rien  se  sont  Gueulx  et  gens  de 
petit  pouvoir,  et  de  faict  les  dits  gentilshommes  de  la  ligue  s'entre 
appellerent  ordinairement  les  gueulx.'"  Compare  Strada,  Hoofd, 
nbi  sup. 


182  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

humor  of  Brederode  was  hailed  with  deafening  shouts 
of  applause.  The  count  then  threw  the  wallet  around 
the  neck  of  his  nearest  neighbor,  and  handed  him  the 
wooden  bowl.  Each  guest  in  turn  donned  the  mendi- 
cant's knapsack.  Pushing  aside  his  golden  goblet,  each 
filled  the  beggars'  bowl  to  the  brim,  and  drained  it  to 
the  beggars'  health.  Roars  of  laughter,  and  shouts  of 
''  Vivent  les  gueux !  "  shook  the  walls  of  the  stately  man- 
sion as  they  were  doomed  never  to  shake  again.  The 
shibboleth  was  invented.  The  conjuration  which  they 
had  been  anxiously  seeking  was  found.  Their  enemies 
had  provided  them  with  a  spell  which  was  to  prove,  in 
after  days,  potent  enough  to  start  a  spirit  from  palace 
or  hovel,  forest  or  wave,  as  the  deeds  of  the  "wild 
beggars,"  the  "  wood  beggars,"  and  the  *'  beggars  of  the 
sea"  taught  Philip  at  last  to  understand  the  nation 
which  he  had  driven  to  madness. 

"When  the  wallet  and  bowl  had  made  the  circuit  of 
the  table,  they  v/ere  suspended  to  a  pillar  in  the  hall. 
Each  of  the  company  in  succession  then  threw  some  salt 
into  his  goblet,  and,  placing  himself  under  these  sym- 
bols of  the  brotherhood,  repeated  a  jingling  distich,  pro- . 
duced  impromptu  for  the  occasion : 

By  this  salt,  by  this  bread,  by  this  wallet  we  swear, 

These  beggars  ne'er  will  change,  though  all  the  world  should  stare.  ^ 

This  ridiculous  ceremony  completed  the  rites  by  which 
the  confederacy  received  its  name ;  but  the  banquet  was 
by  no  means  terminated.  The  uproar  became  furious. 
The  younger  and  more  reckless  nobles  abandoned  them- 

1  "  Par  le  sel,  par  le  pain,  par  la  besache, 

Les  gueuLx  ne  changeront  quoy  qu'on  se  faehe." 

Pontus  Payen  MS.     Van  der  Haer» 


1566]  NAME  OF  THE  CONFEDERACY  183 

selves  to  revelry  which  would  have  shamed  heathen 
Saturnalia.  They  renewed  to  each  other,  every  moment, 
their  vociferous  oaths  of  fidelity  to  the  common  cause, 
drained  huge  beakers  to  the  beggars'  health,  turned 
their  caps  and  doublets  inside  out,  danced  upon  chairs 
and  tables.!  Several  addressed  each  other  as  Lord 
Abbot  or  Reverend  Prior  of  this  or  that  religious  insti- 
tution, thus  indicating  the  means  by  which  some  of 
them  hoped  to  mend  their  broken  fortunes.^ 

While  the  tumult  was  at  its  height,  the  Prince  of 
Orange,  with  Counts  Horn  and  Egmont,  entered  the 
apartment.  They  had  been  dining  quietly  with  Mans- 
feld,  who  was  confined  to  his  house  with  an  inflamed 
eye,^  and  they  were  on  their  way  to  the  council-chamber, 
where  the  sessions  were  now  prolonged  nightly  to  a  late 
hour.  Knowing  that  Hoogstraateu,  somewhat  against 
his  will,  had  been  induced  to  be  present  at  the  banquet, 
they  had  come  round  by  the  way  of  Culemburg  House 
to  induce  him  to  retire.*  They  were  also  disposed,  if 
possible,  to  abridge  the  festi^dties  which  their  influence 
would  have  been  powerless  to  prevent. 

These  great  nobles,  as  soon  as  they  made  their  ap- 
pearance, were  surrounded  by  a  crew  of  "beggars," 
maddened  and  dripping  with  their  recent  baptism  of 
wine,  who  compelled  them  to  drink  a  cup  amid  shouts 
of  "  Vivent  le  roi  et  les  gueux !  "  The  meaning  of  this 
cry  they  of  course  could  not  understand,  for  even  those 
who  had  heard  Berlaymont's  contemptuous  remarks 
might  not  remember  the  exact  term  which  he  had  used, 

^  Vau  der  Haer,  315. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

3  Procfes  du  Comte  de  Homes,  Foppens,  i.  161. 
<  Ibid.,  i.  160-162. 


184  THE  BISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

and  certainly  could  not  be  aware  of  the  importance  to 
which  it  had  just  been  elevated.  As  for  Horn,  he  dis- 
liked and  had  long  before  quarreled  with  Brederode,i 
had  prevented  many  persons  from  signing  the  Com- 
promise, and,  although  a  guest  at  that  time  of  Orange, 
was  in  the  habit  of  retiring  to  bed  before  supper,^  to 
avoid  the  company  of  many  who  frequented  the  house. 
Yet  his  presence  for  a  few  moments,  with  the  best  in- 
tentions, at  the  conclusion  of  this  famous  banquet,  was 
made  one  of  the  most  deadly  charges  which  were  after- 
ward drawn  up  against  him  by  the  crown.  The  three 
seigniors  refused  to  be  seated,  and  remained  but  for  a 
moment,  "the  length  of  a  Miserere,"  taking  with  them 
Hoogstraaten  as  they  retired.  They  also  prevailed  upon 
the  whole  party  to  break  up  at  the  same  time,  so  that 
their  presence  had  served  at  least  to  put  a  conclusion  to 
the  disgraceful  riot.  When  they  arrived  at  the  council- 
chamber  they  received  the  thanks  of  the  duchess  for 
what  they  had  done.^ 

Such  was  the  first  movement  made  by  the  members 
of  the  Compromise,  Was  it  strange  that  Orange  should 
feel  little  affinity  with  such  companions?  Had  he  not 
reason  to  hesitate,  if  the  sacred  cause  of  civil  and  reli- 
gious liberty  could  only  be  maintained  by  these  defenders 
and  with  such  assistance  ? 

The  '^ beggars"  did  not  content  themselves  with  the 
name  alone  of  the  time-honored  fraternity  of  mendi- 
cants in  which  they  had  enrolled  themselves.  Imme- 
diately after  the  Culemburg  banquet,  a  costume  for  the 

1  Van  der  Haer,  315,  316. 

2  "Ne  bougea  du  lict  quand  Ton  disnoit  ou  souppoit."— Procfes 
de  Homes,  Foppens,  i.  163. 

3  Foppens,  Supplement,  ubi  sup. 


1566]  COSTUME  OP  THE  BEGGAES  185 

confederacy  was  decided  upon.  These  young  gentle- 
men, discarding  gold  lace  and  velvet,  thought  it  expedi- 
ent to  array  themselves  in  doublets  and  hose  of  ashen 
gray,  with  short  cloaks  of  the  same  color,  aU  of  the 
coarsest  materials.  They  appeared  in  this  guise  in  the 
streets,  with  common  felt  hats  on  their  heads,  and  beg- 
gars' pouches  and  bowls  at  their  sides.  They  caused 
also  medals  of  lead  and  copper  to  be  struck,  bearing 
upon  one  side  the  head  of  Philip ;  upon  the  reverse,  two 
hands  clasped  within  a  wallet,  with  the  motto,  "  Faithful 
to  the  king,  even  to  wearing  the  beggar's  sack."  ^  These 
badges  they  wore  around  their  necks,  or  as  buttons  to 
their  hats.  As  a  further  distinction  they  shaved  their 
beards  close,  excepting  the  mustachios,  which  were  left 
long  and  pendent  in  the  Turkish  fashion,^  that  custom, 
as  it  seemed,  being  an  additional  characteristic  of 
mendicants. 

Very  soon  after  these  events  the  nobles  of  the  league 
dispersed  from  the  capital  to  their  various  homes.  Bre- 
derode  rode  out  of  Brussels  at  the  head  of  a  band 
of  cavaliers,  who  saluted  the  concourse  of  applauding 
spectators  with  a  discharge  of  their  pistols.  Forty- 
three  gentlemen  accompanied  him  to  Antwerp,  where 
he  halted  for  a  night.^  The  duchess  had  already  sent 
notice  to  the  magistrates  of  that  city  of  his  intended 
visit,  and  warned  them  to  have  an  eye  upon  his  pro- 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  Pieces  concernant,  etc.,  MS.  Compare 
Strada,  Hoofd,  Bentivoglio,  Van  der  Haer,  ubi  sup. ;  Correspon- 
dance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  409. 

2  "  Laissans  en  dessoubs  les  narines  longues  mourmerstaeques  h 
la  turcquesque."— Pieces  concernant  I'Hist.  des  P.  B.,  etc.,  MS. 
Compare  Strada,  v.  189. 

3  Strada,  v.  19. 


186  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

ceedings.  The  "  great  beggar/'  ^  as  Hoogstraaten  called 
him,  conducted  himself,  however,  with  as  much  pro- 
priety as  could  be  expected.  Four  or  five  thousand  of 
the  inhabitants  thronged  about  the  hotel  where  he  had 
taken  up  his  quarters.  He  appeared  at  a  window  with 
his  wooden  bowl,  filled  with  wine,  in  his  hands,  and  his 
wallet  at  his  side.  He  assured  the  multitude  that  he 
was  ready  to  die  to  defend  the  good  people  of  Antwerp 
and  of  all  the  Netherlands  against  the  edicts  and  the 
Inquisition.  Meantime  he  drank  their  healths,  and 
begged  all  who  accepted  the  pledge  to  hold  up  their 
hands.  The  populace,  highly  amused,  held  up  and 
clapped  their  hands  as  honest  Brederode  drained  his 
bowl,  and  were  soon  afterward  persuaded  to  retire  in 
great  good  humor.^ 

These  proceedings  were  all  chronicled  and  transmitted 
to  Madrid.  It  was  also  both  publicly  reported  and 
secretly  registered  that  Brederode  had  eaten  capons  and 
other  meat  at  Antwerp  upon  Good  Friday,  which  hap- 
pened to  be  the  day  of  his  visit  to  that  city.  He  denied 
the  charge,  however,  with  ludicrous  vehemence.  ''  They 
who  have  told  madame  that  we  ate  meat  in  Antwerp," 
he  wrote  to  Count  Louis,  "have  lied  wickedty  and 
miserably,  twenty-four  feet  down  in  their  throats."^ 
He  added  that  his  nephew,  Charles  Mansfeld,  who,  not- 
withstanding the  indignant  prohibition  of  his  father, 
had  assisted  at  the  presentation  of  the  Request,  and 
was  then  in  his  uncle's  company  at  Antwerp,  had 
ordered  a  capon,  which  Brederode  had  countermanded. 

^  "Le  grant  geu."— Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  184. 

2  Strada,  v.  191. 

3  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  410,  411.  Groen  v.  Prinst., 
Archives,  etc.,  ii.  98,  99. 


1566J  CHARGE  Ai&AINST  BREDERODE  187 

"They  told  me  afterward,"  said  he,  "that  my  nephew 
had  broiled  a  sausage  in  his  chamber.  I  suppose  tliat 
he  thought  himseK  in  Spain,  where  they  allow  them- 
selves such  dainties."  ^ 

Let  it  not  be  thought  that  these  trifles  are  beneath 
the  dignity  of  history.  Matters  like  these  filled  the 
whole  soul  of  Philip,  swelled  the  bills  of  indictment  for 
thousands  of  higher  and  better  men  than  Brederode, 
and  furnished  occupation  as  well  for  secret  correspon- 
dents and  spies  as  for  the  most  dignified  functionaries 
of  government.  Capons  or  sausages  on  Good  Friday, 
the  psalms  of  Clement  Marot,  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 
in  the  vernacular,  led  to  the  rack,  the  gibbet,  and  the 
stake,  but  ushered  in  a  war  against  the  Inquisition 
which  was  to  last  for  eighty  years.  Brederode  was  not 
to  be  the  hero  of  that  party  which  he  disgraced  by  his 
buffoonery.  Had  he  lived,  he  might,  perhaps,  like  many 
of  his  confederates,  have  redeemed  by  his  bravery  in 
the  field  a  character  which  his  orgies  had  rendered 
despicable.  He  now  left  Antwerp  for  the  north  of  Hol- 
land, where,  as  he  soon  afterward  reported  to  Count 
Louis,  "  the  beggars  were  as  numerous  as  the  sands  on 
the  sea-shore."  ^ 

His  "  nephew  Charles,"  two  months  afterward,  obeyed 
his  father's  injunction,  and  withdrew  formally  from  the 
confederacy.^ 

Meantime  the  rumor  had  gone  abroad  that  the  Re- 
quest of  the  nobles  had  already  produced  good  fruit — 
that  the  edicts  were  to  be  mitigated,  the  Inquisition 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  410,  411. 

2  "Les  gens  sont  par  icy  sem6  comme  la  sable  du  Ion  de  la 
mer."— Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  130. 

5  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  421. 


l88  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

abolished,  liberty  of  conscience  eventually  to  prevail. 
"  Upon  these  reports,"  says  a  contemporary,  "  all  the 
vermin  of  exiles  and  fugitives  for  religion,  as  well  as 
those  who  had  kept  in  concealment,  began  to  lift  up 
their  heads  and  thrust  forth  their  horns."  ^  It  was 
known  that  Margaret  of  Parma  had  ordered  the  inquis- 
itors and  magistrates  to  conduct  themselves  "  modestly 
and  discreetly."  It  was  known  that  the  privy  council 
was  hard  at  work  upon  the  project  for  "moderating" 
the  edicts.  Modestly  and  discreetly,  Margaret  of  Parma, 
almost  immediately  after  giving  these  orders,  and  while 
the  "  Moderation  "  was  still  in  the  hands  of  the  lawyers, 
informed  her  brother  that  she  had  given  personal  atten- 
tion to  the  case  of  a  person  who  had  snatched  the  holy 
wafer  from  the  priest's  hand  at  Oudenarde.  This 
''  quidam,"  as  she  called  him, — for  his  name  was  beneath 
the  cognizance  of  an  emperor's  bastard  daughter, — had 
by  her  orders  received  rigorous  and  exemplary  justice.^ 
And  what  was  the  ''rigorous  and  exemplary  justice" 
thus  inflicted  upon  the  "  quidam  "  1  The  procurator  of 
the  neighboring  city  of  Tournay  has  enabled  us  to 
answer.  The  young  man,  who  was  a  tapestry-weaver, 
Hans  Tiskaen  by  name,^  had,  upon  the  30th  May, 
thrown  the  holy  wafer  upon  the  ground.  For  this 
crime,  which  was  the  same  as  that  committed  on  Christ- 
mas day  of  a  previous  year  by  Bertrand  Le  Bias  at  Tour- 
nay,  he  now  met  with  a  similar   although  not  quite 

1  Renom  de  France  MS. 

2  "  Si  comme  ayant  command^  que  la  justice  se  faict  d'un 
quidam  a  Audenaerde,  qui  ces  jours  ayant  prinse  la  saincte  hostie 
eonsacr^e  hors  des  mains  du  prestre,  I'a  jeet<5e  par  terre,  duquel 
g'est  faict  rigoureuse  et  exemplaire  justice."— Reiffenberg,  Con-e- 
spondance  Marg.  d'Autr.,  45. 

3  Bor,  ii.  62. 


1566]  EXECUTION  AT  OUDENARDE  189 

so  severe  a  pnnisliment.  Having  gone  quietly  home 
after  doing  the  deed,  he  was  pursued,  arrested,  and 
upon  the  Saturday  ensuing  taken  to  the  market-place 
of  Oudenarde.  Here  the  right  hand  with  which  he  had 
committed  the  offense  was  cut  off,  and  he  was  then 
fastened  to  the  stake  and  burned  to  death  over  a  slow 
fire.  He  was  fortunately  not  more  than  a  quarter  of  an 
hour  in  torment,  but  he  persisted  in  his  opinions,  and 
called  on  God  for  support  to  his  last  breath.^ 

This  homely  tragedy  was  enacted  at  Oudenarde,  the 
birthplace  of  Duchess  Margaret.  She  was  the  daughter 
of  the  puissant  Charles  V.,  but  her  mother  was  only  the 
daughter  of  a  citizen  of  Oudenarde— of  a  "  quidam  "  like 
the  nameless  weaver  who  had  thus  been  burned  by  her 
express  order.  It  was  not  to  be  supposed,  however, 
that  the  circumstance  could  operate  in  so  great  a  male- 
factor's favor.  Moreover,  at  the  same  moment,  she 
sent  orders  that  a  like  punishment  should  be  inflicted 
upon  another  person,  then  in  a  Flemish  prison,  for  the 
crime  of  Anabaptism.^ 

The  privy  council,  assisted  by  thirteen  Knights  of  the 
Fleece,  had  been  hard  at  work,  and  the  result  of  their 
wisdom  was  at  last  revealed  in  a  '^  Moderation  "  consist- 
ing of  fifty-three  articles.^ 

What,  now,  was  the  substance  of  those  fifty-three 
articles,  so  painfully  elaborated  by  Viglius,  so  hand- 
somely drawn  up  into  shape  by  Councilor  d'Assonle- 
ville?  Simply  to  substitute  the  halter  for  the  fagot. 
After  elimination  of  all  verbiage,  this  fact  was  the  only 

1  Pasquier  de  la  Barre,  Recoeil,  etc.,  MS.  in  the  Brussels 
Archives,  .f .  16''''. 

2  Reiffenberg,  Correspondance,  45. 
5  Ep.  ad  Hopperum,  459. 


190  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

residuum. 1  It  was  most  distinctly  laid  doTPn  that  all 
forms  of  religion  except  the  Roman  Catholic  were  for- 
bidden ;  that  no  public  or  secret  conventicles  were  to  be 
allowed;  that  all  heretical  writings  were  to  be  sup- 
pressed; that  all  curious  inquiries  into  the  Scriptures 
were  to  be  prohibited.  Persons  who  infringed  these 
regulations  were  divided  into  two  classes — the  mis- 
leaders  and  the  misled.  There  was  an  affectation  of 
granting  mercy  to  persons  in  the  second  category,  while 
death  was  denounced  upon  those  composing  the  first. 
It  was  merely  an  affectation,  for  the  rambling  statute 
was  so  open  in  all  its  clauses  that  the  Juggernaut  car 
of  persecution  could  be  driven  through  the  whole  of 
them  whenever  such  a  course  should  seem  expedient. 
Every  man  or  woman  in  the  Netherlands  might  be 
placed  in  the  list  of  the  misleaders,  at  the  discretion  of 
the  ofl&cials.  The  pretended  mercy  to  the  misguided 
was  a  mere  delusion.  The  superintendents,  preachers, 
teachers,  ministers,  sermon-makers,  deacons,  and  other 
officers  were  to  be  executed  with  the  halter,  with  confis- 
cation of  their  whole  property.  So  much  was  very 
plain.  Other  heretics,  however,  who  would  abjure  their 
heresy  before  the  bishop  might  be  pardoned  for  the 
first  offense,  but  if  obstinate  were  to  be  banished.  This 
seemed  an  indication  of  mercy,  at  least  to  the  repentant 
criminals.  But  who  were  these  ^^ other"  heretics?  All 
persons  who  discussed  religious  matters  were  to  be  put 
to  death.  All  persons,  not  having  studied  theology  at 
a  "renowned  university,"  who  searched  and  expounded 
the  Scriptures  were  to  be  put  to  death.  All  persons  in 
whose  houses  any  act  of  the  perverse  religion  should  be 

1  See  the  text  of  the  proposed  "Moderation"  in  fifty-three  arti- 
cles, in  Bor,  i.  f.  64,  65,  66. 


1566]  "MODERATION"  191 

committed  were  to  be  put  to  death.  All  persons  who 
harbored  or  protected  ministers  and  teachers  of  any 
sect  were  to  be  put  to  death.  All  the  criminals  thus 
carefully  enumerated  were  to  be  executed,  whether  re- 
pentant or  not.  If,  however,  they  abjured  their  errors, 
they  were  to  be  beheaded  instead  of  being  strangled. 
Thus  it  was  obvious  that  almost  any  heretic  might  be 
brought  to  the  halter  at  a  moment's  notice. 

Strictly  speaking,  the  idea  of  death  by  the  halter  or 
the  ax  was  less  shocking  to  the  imagination  than  that  of 
being  burned  or  buried  alive.  In  this  respect,  therefore, 
the  edicts  were  softened  by  the  proposed  '^  Moderation." 
It  would,  however,  always  be  difficult  to  persuade  any 
considerable  number  of  intelligent  persons  that  the 
infliction  of  a  violent  death,  by  whatever  process,  on 
account  of  religious  opinions,  was  an  act  of  clemency. 
The  Netherlanders  were,  however,  to  be  persuaded  into 
this  belief.  The  draft  of  the  new  edict  was  ostenta- 
tiously called  the  "Moderatie,"  or  the  ''Moderation." 
It  was  very  natural,  therefore,  that  the  common  people, 
by  a  quibble,  which  is  the  same  in  Flemish  as  in  Eng- 
lish, should  call  the  proposed  '^ Moderation"  the  "Mur- 
deration."!  The  rough  mother- wit  of  the  people  had 
already  characterized  and  annihilated  the  project  while 
dull  formalists  were  carrying  it  through  the  preliminary 
stages. 

A  vote  in  favor  of  the  project  having  been  obtained 
from  the  estates  of  Artois,  Hainault,  and  Flanders,  the 
instructions  for  the  envoys.  Baron  Montigny  and  Mar- 
quis Berghen,  were  made  out  in  conformity  to  the 
scheme.^    Egmont  had  declined  the  mission,^  not  having 

1  Meteren,  ii.  38.     Hoofd,  iii.  81. 

2  Correspondance  de  PMlippe  II.,  i.  412.  3  ibid.,  i.  407. 


192  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1566 

reason  to  congratulate  himself  upon  the  diplomatic  suc- 
cess of  his  visit  to  Spain  in  the  preceding  year.  The 
two  nobles  who  consented  to  undertake  the  office  were 
persuaded  into  acceptance  sorely  against  their  will. 
They  were  aware  that  their  political  conduct  since  the 
king's  departure  from  the  country  had  not  always  been 
deemed  satisfactory  at  Madrid,  but  they  were,  of  course, 
far  from  suspecting  the  true  state  of  the  royal  mind. 
They  were  both  as  sincere  Catholics  and  as  loyal  gen- 
tlemen as  Granvelle,  but  they  were  not  aware  how  con- 
tinuously, during  a  long  course  of  years,  that  personage 
had  represented  them  to  Philip  as  renegades  and  rebels. 
They  had  maintained  the  constitutional  rights  of  the 
state,  and  they  had  declined  to  act  as  executioners  for 
the  Inquisition,  but  they  were  yet  to  learn  that  such 
demonstrations  amounted  to  high  treason. 

Montigny  departed  on  the  29th  May  from  Brussels.^ 
He  left  the  bride  to  whom  he  had  been  wedded,  amid 
scenes  of  festivity,  the  preceding  autumn ;  the  unborn 
child  who  was  never  to  behold  its  father's  face.  He  re- 
ceived warnings  in  Paris,  by  which  he  scorned  to  profit. 
The  Spanish  ambassador  in  that  city  informed  him  that 
Philip's  wrath  at  the  recent  transactions  in  the  Nether- 
lands was  high.  He  was  most  significantly  requested, 
by  a  leading  personage  in  France,  to  feign  illness,  or  to 
take  refuge  in  any  expedient  by  which  he  might  avoid 
the  fulfilment  of  his  mission.-  Such  hints  had  no  effect 
in  turning  him  from  his  course,  and  he  proceeded  to 
Madrid,  where  he  arrived  on  the  17th  of  June.^ 

His  colleague  in  the  mission,  Marquis  Berghen,  had 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  418. 

2  Hoofd,  iii.  80. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  426. 


1566]  BERGHEN  AND  MONTIGNY  193 

been  prevented  from  setting  forth  at  the  same  time  by 
an  accident  which,  under  the  circumstances,  might  al- 
most seem  ominous.  Walking  through  the  palace  park, 
in  a  place  where  some  gentlemen  were  playing  at  pall- 
maU,  he  was  accidentally  struck  in  the  leg  by  a  wooden 
ball.^  The  injury,  although  trifling,  produced  so  much 
irritation  and  fever  that  he  was  confined  to  his  bed  for 
several  weeks.  It  was  not  until  the  1st  of  July  ^  that  he 
was  .able  to  take  his  departure  from  Brussels.  Both 
these  unfortunate  nobles  thus  went  forth  to  fulfil  that 
dark  and  mysterious  destiny  from  which  the  veil  of 
three  centuries  has  but  recently  been  removed. 

Besides  a  long  historical  discourse,  in  eighteen  chap- 
ters, delivered  by  way  of  instruction  to  the  envoys, 
Margaret  sent  a  courier  beforehand  with  a  variety  of 
intelligence  concerning  the  late  events.  Alonzo  del 
Canto,  one  of  Philip's  spies  in  the  Netherlands,  also 
wrote  to  inform  the  king  that  the  two  ambassadors 
were  the  real  authors  of  all  the  troubles  then  existing 
in  the  country.^  Cardinal  Granvelle,  too,  renewed  his 
previous  statements  in  a  confidential  communication  to 
his  Majesty,  adding  that  no  persons  more  appropriate 
could  have  been  selected  than  Berghen  and  Montigny, 
for  they  knew  better  than  any  one  else  the  state  of 
affairs  in  which  they  had  borne  the  principal  part.* 
Nevertheless,  Montigny,  upon  his  arrival  in  Madrid  on 
the  17th  of  June,  was  received  by  Philip  with  much  ap- 
parent cordiality,  admitted  immediately  to  an  audience,^ 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  412.  Hoofd,  ii.  80.  Strada, 
V.  195.  2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  428,  429. 

3  Ibid.,  i.  410,  411.  •*  Ibid.,  i.  417. 

^  Ibid.,  i.  426.  Hopper  (78,  79)  states  that  the  envoys  were  in- 
dulged with  almost  daily  interviews. 

VOL.  II.— 13     . 


194  THE  EISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

and  assured  in  the  strongest  terms  that  there  was  no 
dissatisfaction  in  the  royal  mind  against  the  seigniors, 
whatever  false  reports  might  be  circulated  to  that  effect. 
In  other  respects  the  result  of  this  and  ot  his  succeeding 
interviews  with  the  monarch  was  sufficiently  meager. 

It  could  not  well  be  otherwise.  The  mission  of  the 
envoys  was  an  elaborate  farce  to  introduce  a  terrible 
tragedy.  They  were  sent  to  procure  from  Philip  the 
abolition  of  the  Inquisition  and  the  moderation  of  the 
edicts.  At  the  very  moment,  however,  of  all  these  legis- 
lative and  diplomatic  arrangements,  Margaret  of  Parma 
was  in  possession  of  secret  letters  from  Philip,  which 
she  was  charged  to  deliver  to  the  Archbishop  of  Sor- 
rento, papal  nuncio  at  the  imperial  court,  then  on  a 
special  visit  to  Brussels.  This  ecclesiastic  had  come  to 
the  Netherlands  ostensibly  to  confer  with  the  Prince  of 
Orange  upon  the  affairs  of  his  principality,  to  remon- 
strate with  Count  Culemburg,  and  to  take  measures  for 
the  reformation  of  the  clergy.  The  real  object  of  his 
mission,  however,  was  to  devise  means  for  strengthen- 
ing the  Inquisition  and  suppressing  heresy  in  the  prov- 
inces. Philip,  at  whose  request  he  had  come,  had 
charged  him  by  no  means  to  divulge  the  secret,  as  the 
king  was  anxious  to  have  it  beHeved  that  the  ostensible 
was  the  only  business  which  the  prelate  had  to  perform 
in  the  country.  Margaret  accordingly  delivered  to  him 
the  private  letters  in  which  Philip  avowed  his  deter- 
mination to  maintain  the  Inquisition  and  the  edicts  in  all 
their  rigor,  but  enjoined  profound  secrecy  upon  the  sub- 
ject.^ The  duchess,  therefore,  who  knew  the  face  of 
the  cards,  must  have  thought  it  a  superfluous  task  to 

1  Reiffenberg,  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autr.,  58-61.  Corre- 
spondance  de  Philippe  II.,  1.  422. 


1566]  CAMP-MEETINGS  195 

continue  the  game,  wMch  to  Philip's  cruel  but  procrasti- 
nating temperament  was  perhaps  a  pleasurable  excite- 
ment. 

The  scheme  for  mitigating  the  edicts  by  the  substitu- 
tion of  strangling  for  burning  was  not  destined,  there- 
fore, for  much  success  either  in  Spain  or  in  the  provinces ; 
but  the  people  by  whom  the  next  great  movement  was 
made  in  the  drama  of  the  revolt  conducted  themselves 
in  a  manner  to  shame  the  sovereign  who  oppressed,  and 
the  riotous  nobles  who  had  undertaken  to  protect,  their 
liberties. 

At  this  very  moment,  in  the  early  summer  of  1566, 
many  thousands  of  burghers,  merchants,  peasants,  and 
gentlemen  were  seen  mustering  and  marching  through 
the  fields  of  every  province,  armed  with  harquebus, 
javelin,  pike,  and  broadsword.  For  what  purpose  were 
these  gatherings?  Only  to  hear  sermons  and  to  sing 
hymns  in  the  open  air,  as  it  was  unlawful  to  profane 
the  churches  with  such  rites.  This  was  the  first  great 
popular  phase  of  the  Netherland  rebellion.  Notwith- 
standing the  edicts  and  the  Inquisition  with  their  daily 
hecatombs,  notwithstanding  the  special  publication  at 
this  time  throughout  the  country  by  the  duchess  regent 
that  all  the  sanguinary  statutes  concerning  religion 
were  in  as  great  vigor  as  ever,i  notwithstanding  that 
Margaret  offered  a  reward  of  seven  hundred  crowns  to 
the  man  who  would  bring  her  a  preacher  dead  or  ahve,^ 
the  popular  thirst  for  the  exercises  of  the  Reformed 
religion  could  no  longer  be  slaked  at  the  obscure  and 
hidden  fountains  where  their  priests  had  so  long  pri- 
vately ministered. 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.     Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


196  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

Partly  emboldened  by  a  temporary  lull  in  the  persecu- 
tion, partly  encouraged  by  the  presentation  of  the  Re- 
quest and  by  the  events  to  which  it  had  given  rise,  the 
reformers  now  came  boldly  forth  from  their  lurking- 
places  and  held  their  religious  meetings  in  the  light  of 
day.  The  consciousness  of  numbers  and  of  right  had 
brought  the  conviction  of  strength.  The  audacity  of 
the  reformers  was  wonderful  to  the  mind  of  President 
Viglius,  who  could  find  no  language  strong  enough  with 
which  to  characterize  and  to  deplore  such  blasphemous 
conduct.!  The  field-preaching  seemed  in  the  eyes  of 
government  to  spread  with  the  rapidity  of  a  malignant 
pestilence.  The  miasma  flew  upon  the  wings  of  the 
wind.  As  early  as  1562  there  had  been  public  preach- 
ing in  the  neighborhood  of  Ypres.  The  executions 
which  followed,  however,  had  for  the  time  suppressed 
the  practice  both  in  that  place  as  well  as  throughout 
Flanders  and  the  rest  of  the  provinces.  It  now  broke 
forth  as  by  one  impulse  from  one  end  of  the  country  to 
the  other.  In  the  latter  part  of  June,  Hermann  Strycker, 
or  Modet,  a  monk  who  had  renounced  his  vows  to 
become  one  of  the  most  popular  preachers  in  the  Re- 
formed Church,  addressed  a  congregation  of  seven  or 
eight  thousand  persons  in  the  neighborhood  of  Ghent." 
Peter  Dathenus,  another  unfrocked  monk,  preached  at 
various  places  in  West  Flanders  with  great  effect.  A 
man  endowed  with  a  violent,  stormy  eloquence,  intem- 
perate as  most  zealots,  he  was  then  rendering  better 
services  to  the  cause  of  the  Reformation  than  he  was 
destined  to  do  at  later  periods. 

But  apostate  priests  were  not  the  only  preachers.     To 

1  Ep.  ad  Joach.  Hopperum,  362. 

2  Brandt,  304,  305. 


1566]  CHARACTER  OP   THE   PREACHERS  197 

the  ineffable  disgust  of  the  conservatives  in  church  and 
state,  there  were  men  with  little  education,  utterly 
devoid  of  Hebrew,  of  lowly  station, — hatters,  curriers, 
tanners,  dyers,  and  the  like,— who  began  to  preach  also ; 
remembering,  unseasonably  perhaps,  that  the  early  dis- 
ciples selected  by  the  Founder  of  Christianity  had  not 
all  been  doctors  of  theology,  with  diplomas  from  a  "  re- 
nowned university."  But  if  the  nature  of  such  men 
were  subdued  to  what  it  worked  in,  that  charge  could 
not  be  brought  against  ministers  with  the  learning  and 
accomplishments  of  Ambrose  Wille,  Marnier,  Guy  de 
Bray,  or  Francis  Junius,  the  man  whom  Scaliger  called 
the  ''greatest  of  all  theologians  since  the  days  of  the 
apostles  "  1  An  aristocratic  sarcasm  could  not  be  leveled 
against  Peregrine  de  la  Grange,  of  a  noble  family  in 
Provence,  with  the  fiery  blood  of  southern  France  in 
his  veins,  brave  as  his  nation,  learned,  eloquent,  enthusi- 
astic, who  galloped  to  his  field-preaching  on  horseback, 
and  fired  a  pistol-shot  as  a  signal  for  his  congregation 
to  give  attention. 2 

On  the  28th  of  June,  1566,  at  eleven  o'clock  at  night, 
there  was  an  assemblage  of  six  thousand  people  near 
Tournay,  at  the  bridge  of  Ernonville,  to  hear  a  sermon 
from  Ambrose  Wille,  a  man  who  had  studied  theology 
in  Geneva  at  the  feet  of  Calvin,  and  who  now,  with  a 
special  price  upon  his  head,^  was  preaching  the  doctrines 
he  had  learned.  Two  days  afterward  ten  thousand 
people  assembled  at  the  same  spot  to  hear  Peregrine  de 
la  Grange.  Governor  Moulbais  thundered  forth  a  proc- 
lamation from  the  citadel,  warning  all  men  that  the 

1  Bakhuyzen  v.  d.  Brink,  Het  Huwelijk,  110. 

2  Bakhuyzen,  127.     De  la  Barre  MS.,  f.  16. 
»  De  la  Barre  MS.,  f.  18. 


198  THE  RISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

edicts  were  as  rigorous  as  ever,  and  that  every  man, 
woman,  or  child  who  went  to  these  preachings  was 
incurring  the  penalty  of  death.i  The  people  became 
only  the  more  ardent  and  excited.  Upon  Sunday,  the 
7th  of  July,  twenty  thousand  persons  assembled  at  the 
same  bridge  to  hear  Ambrose  Wille.  One  man  in  three 
was  armed.  Some  had  harquebuses,  others  pistols, 
pikes,  swords,  pitchforks,  poniards,  clubs.  The  preacher, 
for  whose  apprehension  a  fresh  reward  had  been  offered, 
was  escorted  to  his  pulpit  by  a  hundred  mounted 
troopers.  He  begged  his  audience  not  to  be  scared 
from  the  Word  of  God  by  menace ;  assured  them  that, 
although  but  a  poor  preacher  himself,  he  held  a  divine 
commission ;  that  he  had  no  fear  of  death ;  that,  should 
he  fall,  there  were  many  better  than  he  to  supply 
Ms  place,  and  fifty  thousand  men  to  avenge  his  mur. 
der.2 

The  duchess  sent  forth  proclamations  by  hundreds. 
She  ordered  the  instant  suppression  of  these  armed 
assemblies  and  the  arrest  of  the  preachers.  But  of 
what  avail  were  proclamations  against  such  numbers 
with  weapons  in  their  hands  ?  Why  irritate  to  madness 
these  hordes  of  enthusiasts,  who  were  now  entirely 
pacific,  and  who  marched  back  to  the  city,  after  con- 
clusion of  divine  service,  with  perfect  decorum?  All 
classes  of  the  population  went  eagerly  to  the  sermons. 
The  gentry  of  the  place,  the  rich  merchants,  the  nota- 
bles, as  well  as  the  humbler  artisans  and  laborers,  all 
had  received  the  infection.  The  professors  of  the  Re- 
formed religion  outnumbered  the  Catholics  by  five  or 
six  to  one.  On  Sundays  and  other  holidays,  during  the 
hours  of  service,  Tournay  was  literally  emptied  of  its 

1  De  la  Barre  MS.  2  Ibid. 


1566]  SEKMONS  IN  FIELDS  199 

inhabitants.  The  streets  were  as  silent  as  if  war  or 
pestilence  had  swept  the  place.  The  duchess  sent  orders, 
but  she  sent  no  troops.  The  trained  bands  of  the  city, 
the  crossbowmen  of  St.  Maurice,  the  archers  of  St. 
Sebastian,  the  sword-players  of  St.  Christopher,  could 
not  be  ordered  from  Tournay  to  suppress  the  preaching, 
for  they  had  all  gone  to  the  preaching  themselves. 
How  idle,  therefore,  to  send  peremptory  orders  without 
a  matchlock  to  enforce  the  command !  ^ 

Throughout  Flanders  similar  scenes  were  enacted. 
The  meetings  were  encampments,  for  the  reformers 
now  came  to  their  religious  services  armed  to  the  teeth, 
determined,  if  banished  from  the  churches,  to  defend 
their  right  to  the  fields.  Barricades  of  upturned 
wagons,  branches,  and  planks  were  thrown  up  around 
the  camps.  Strong  guards  of  mounted  men  were  sta- 
tioned at  every  avenue.  Outlying  scouts  gave  notice 
of  approaching  danger,  and  guided  the  faithful  into  the 
inclosure.  Peddlers  and  hawkers  plied  the  trade  upon 
which  the  penalty  of  death  was  fixed,  and  sold  the  for- 
bidden hymn-books  to  all  who  chose  to  purchase.^  A 
strange  and  contradictory  spectacle !  An  army  of  crim- 
inals doing  deeds  which  could  only  be  expiated  at  the 
stake  5  an  intrenched  rebellion,  bearding  the  govern- 
ment with  pike,  matchlock,  javelin,  and  barricade,  and 
all  for  no  more  deadly  purpose  than  to  listen  to  the 
precepts  of  the  pacific  Jesus. 

Thus  the  preaching  spread  through  the  Walloon  prov- 
inces to  the  northern  Netherlands.  Toward  the  end  of 
July  an  apostate  monk,  of  singular  eloquence,  Peter 
Gabriel  by  name,  was  announced  to  preach  at  Overveen, 

1  De  la  Barre  MS. 

2  Brandt,  i.  305.    Nic.  Burgund.,  Hist.  Belg.,  iii.  213. 


200  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

near  Haarlem.^  This  was  tlie  first  field-meeting  wliicli 
had  taken  place  in  Holland.  The  people  were  wild 
with  enthusiasm,  the  authorities  beside  themselves  with 
apprehension.  People  from  the  country  flocked  into 
the  town  by  thousands.  The  other  cities  were  deserted ; 
Haarlem  was  filled  to  overflowing.  Multitudes  encamped 
upon  the  ground  the  night  before.  The  magistrates 
ordered  the  gates  to  be  kept  closed  in  the  morning  till 
long  after  the  usual  hour.  It  was  of  no  avail.  Bolts 
and  bars  were  but  small  impediments  to  enthusiasts  who 
had  traveled  so  many  miles  on  foot  or  horseback  to 
listen  to  a  sermon.  They  climbed  the  walls,  swam  the 
moat,  and  thronged  to  the  place  of  meeting  long  before 
the  doors  had  been  opened.  When  these  could  no  longer 
be  kept  closed  without  a  conflict,  for  which  the  magis- 
trates were  not  prepared,  the  whole  population  poured 
out  of  the  city  with  a  single  impulse.^  Tens  of  thou- 
sands were  assembled  upon  the  field.  The  bulwarks 
were  erected  as  usual,  the  guards  were  posted,  the 
necessary  precautions  taken.  But  upon  this  occasion 
and  in  that  region  there  was  but  little  danger  to  be 
apprehended.  The  multitude  of  reformers  made  the 
edicts  impossible,  so  long  as  no  foreign  troops  were 
there  to  enforce  them.  The  congregation  was  encamped 
and  arranged  in  an  orderly  manner.  The  women,  of 
whom  there  were  many,  were  placed  next  the  pulpit, 
which,  upon  this  occasion,  was  formed  of  a  couple  of 
spears  thrust  into  the  earth,  sustaining  a  cross-piece, 
against  which  the  preacher  might  lean  his  back.  The 
services  commenced  with  the  singing  of  a  psalm  by  the 
whole  vast  assemblage.    Clement  Marot's  verses,  recently 

1  Brandt,  320,  321.     Memorien  van  Laurens  Jacq.  Reael,  f.  20, 
21,  22,  apud  Brandt.  2  i^id. 


1566]  PETER  GABRIEL  AT   HAARLEM  201 

translated  by  Dathenus,  were  then  new  and  popular. 
The  strains  of  the  monarch  minstrel,  chanted  thus  in 
their  homely  but  nervous  mother-tongue  by  a  multitude 
who  had  but  recently  learned  that  all  the  poetry  and 
rapture  of  devotion  were  not  irrevocably  coffined  with 
a  buried  language  or  immured  in  the  precincts  of  a 
church,  had  never  produced  a  more  elevating  effect. 
No  anthem  from  the  world-renowned  organ  in  that 
ancient  city  ever  awakened  more  lofty  emotions  than 
did  those  ten  thousand  human  voices  ringing  from  the 
grassy  meadows  in  that  fervid  midsummer  noon.  When 
all  was  silent  again,  the  preacher  rose — a  little,  meager 
man,  who  looked  as  if  he  might  rather  melt  away  beneath 
the  blazing  sunshine  of  July  than  hold  the  multitude  en- 
chained four  uninterrupted  hours  long  by  the  magic  of 
his  tongue.  His  text  was  the  eighth,  ninth,  and  tenth 
verses  of  the  second  chapter  of  Ephesians;  and  as 
the  slender  monk  spoke  to  his  simple  audience  of  God's 
grace,  and  of  faith  in  Jesus,  who  had  descended  from 
above  to  save  the  lowliest  and  the  most  abandoned,  if 
they  would  put  their  trust  in  him,  his  hearers  were 
alternately  exalted  with  fervor  or  melted  into  tears. 
He  prayed  for  all  conditions  of  men— for  themselves, 
their  friends,  their  enemies,  for  the  government  which 
had  persecuted  them,  for  the  king  whose  face  was 
turned  upon  them  in  anger.  At  times,  according  to  one 
who  was  present,  not  a  dry  eye  was  to  be  seen  in  the 
crowd.  When  the  minister  had  finished,  he  left  his 
congregation  abruptly,  for  he  had  to  travel  all  night  in 
order  to  reach  Alkmaar,  where  he  was  to  preach  upon 
the  following  day.^ 

Brandt,  320,  321.     Memorien  van  Laurens  Jacq.  Reael,  f.  20, 
21,  22,  apud  Brandt. 


202  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

By  the  middle  of  July  the  custom  was  established 
outside  all  the  principal  cities.  Camp-meetings  were 
held  in  some  places,  as,  for  instance,  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Antwerp,  where  the  congregations  numbered 
often  fifteen  thousand,^  and  on  some  occasions  were 
estimated  at  between  twenty  and  thirty  thousand  per- 
sons at  a  time;  'Wery  many  of  them,"  said  an  eye-wit- 
ness, "  the  best  and  wealthiest  in  the  town."  ^ 

The  sect  to  which  most  of  these  worshipers  belonged 
was  that  of  Calvin.  In  Antwerp  there  were  Lutherans, 
Calvinists,  and  Anabaptists.  The  Lutherans  were  the 
richest  sect,^  but  the  Calvinists  the  most  numerous  and 
enthusiastic.  The  Prince  of  Orange  at  this  moment 
was  strenuously  opposed  both  to  Calvinism  and  Ana- 
baptism,  but  inclining  to  Lutheranism.*  Political 
reasons  at  this  epoch  doubtless  influenced  his  mind 
in  religious  matters.  The  aid  of  the  Lutheran  princes 
of  Germany,  who  detested  the  doctrines  of  Geneva,  could 
hardly  be  relied  upon  for  the  Netherlanders  unless  they 
would  adopt  the  Confession  of  Augsburg.  The  prince 
knew  that  the  emperor,  although  inclined  to  the  Ref- 
ormation, was  bitterly  averse   to  Calvinism,  and   he 

^  Reiflfenberg,  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriehe,  84, 

2  Letter  of  Clough,  in  Burgon,  ii.  135. 

3  There  were,  however,  but  two  Lutheran  churches  in  all  the 
Netherlands,  according  to  the  statement  of  the  Pi'ince  of  Orange. 
Both  were  in  Antwerp.  "  Es  ist  aber  zu  erbarmen  das  der  Cal- 
vinismus  so  weitt  einreisset  und  die  Augsburgisehe  Confession 
iiberwachsett,  das  in  alien  diesen  landen  seint  nur  zwo  kirchen  der 
Augsburgischen  Confession  und  die  werden  in  dieser  stadt  Antorff 
erhalten.  Der  andere  hauff  ist  durchaus  Calvinisch."— Letter  from 
W.  of  Orange  to  Elector  Augustus,  1st  September,  1566,  MS.  Dres- 
den Archives. 

*  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  157. 


1566]  ALARM  OF  THE  DUCHESS  203 

was  therefore  desirous  of  healing  the  schism  which 
existed  in  the  general  Reformed  Church.  To  accom- 
plish this,  however,  would  be  to  gain  a  greater  victory 
over  the  bigotry  which  was  the  prevailing  characteristic 
of  the  age  than  perhaps  could  be  expected.  The  prince, 
from  the  first  moment  of  his  abandoning  the  ancient 
doctrines,  was  disposed  to  make  the  attempt.^ 

The  duchess  ordered  the  magistrates  of  Antwerp  to 
put  down  these  mass-meetings  by  means  of  the  gild 
militia.  They  replied  that  at  an  earlier  day  such  a 
course  might  have  been  practicable,  but  that  the  sects 
had  become  quite  too  numerous  for  coercion.  If  the 
authorities  were  able  to  prevent  the  exercises  of  the 
Reformed  religion  within  the  city,  it  would  be  as  suc- 
cessful a  result  as  could  be  expected.  To  prevent  the 
preaching  outside  the  walls,  by  means  of  the  burgher 
force,  was  an  utter  impossibility.^  The  dilatoriness  of 
the  sovereign  placed  the  regent  in  a  frightful  dilemma, 
but  it  was  sufficiently  obvious  that  the  struggle  could 
not  long  be  deferred.  ''  There  will  soon  be  a  hard  nut 
to  crack,"  wrote  Count  Louis.  "The  king  will  never 
gi'ant  the  preaching;  the  people  will  never  give  it  up, 
if  it  cost  them  their  necks.  There  's  a  hard  puff  coming 
upon  the  country  before  long."  ^  The  duchess  was  not 
yet  authorized  to  levy  troops,  and  she  feared  that  if  she 
commenced  such  operations  she  should  perhaps  offend  the 
king,  while  she  at  the  same  time  might  provoke  the  people 
into  more  effective  military  preparations  than  her  own.* 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  454,  455,  473,  480,  489,  sqq. 
^  Bor,  ii.  69,  70. 

^  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  208. 

*  "Aussi  si  je  lieve  gens  pour  la  guarde  et  deffenee  de  ce  dit 
pays,  I'on  en  treuve  plusieurs  au  contraire  qui  les  retiennent  en 


204  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

She  felt  that  for  one  company  levied  by  her  the  sec- 
taries could  raise  ten.  Moreover,  she  was  entirely 
without  money,  even  if  she  should  otherwise  think  it 
expedient  to  enroll  an  army.  Meantime  she  did  what 
she  could  with  ''public  prayers,  processions,  fasts,  ser- 
mons, exhortations,"  and  other  ecclesiastical  machinery 
which  she  ordered  the  bishops  to  put  in  motion.^  Her 
situation  was  indeed  sufficiently  alarming. 

Egmont,  whom  many  of  the  sectaries  hoped  to  secure 
as  their  leader  in  case  of  a  civil  war,^  showed  no  disposi- 
tion to  encourage  such  hopes,  but  as  little  to  take  up 
arms  against  the  people.  He  went  to  Flanders,  where 
the  armed  assemblages  for  field-preaching  had  become 
so  numerous  that  a  force  of  thirty  or  forty  thousand 
men  might  be  set  on  foot  almost  at  a  moment's  warning, 
and  where  the  conservatives,  in  a  state  of  alarm,  desired 
the  presence  of  their  renowned  governor.^  The  people 
of  Antwerp,  on  their  part,  demanded  William  of  Orange. 
The  prince,  who  was  hereditary  burgrave  of  the  city, 
had  at  first  declined  the  invitation  of  the  magistracy. 
The  duchess  united  her  request  with  the  universal 
prayer  of  the  inhabitants.  Events  meantime  had  been 
thickening,  and  suspicion  increasing.  Meghen  had  been 
in  the  city  for  several  days,  much  to  the  disgust  of  the 
reformers,  by  whom  he  was  hated.  Aremberg  was 
expected  to  join  him,  and  it  was  rumored  that  measures 

leur  donnant  plus  grande  soulde."— Unpublished  letter  of  Margaret 
of  Parma  to  Philippe  II.,  in  the  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II. 
avec  la  Duchesse  de  Parme,  1566-67,  No.  104,  MS.  Archives  du 
Royaume.     Papiers  d'Etat. 

1  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriehe,  122. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

3  Correspondance  de  M.  d'Autriehe,  136, 


1566]  ANXIETY  OF  THE  MAGISTRATES  205 

"were  secretly  in  progress,  under  the  auspices  of  these 
two  leading  cardinalists,  for  introducing  a  garrison, 
together  with  great  store  of  ammunition,  into  the  city. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  ^'  great  beggar,"  Brederode,  had 
taken  up  his  quarters  also  in  Antwerp,  had  been  daily 
entertaining  a  crowd  of  roistering  nobles  at  his  hotel, 
previously  to  a  second  political  demonstration,  which 
will  soon  be  described,  and  was  constantly  parading  the 
street,  followed  by  a  swarm  of  adherents  in  the  beggar 
livery.  The  sincere  reformers  were  made  nearly  as 
uncomfortable  by  the  presence  of  their  avowed  friends 
as  by  that  of  Meghen  and  Aremberg,  and  earnestly 
desired  to  be  rid  of  them  all.  Long  and  anxious  were 
the  ponderings  of  the  magistrates  upon  all  these  sub- 
jects. It  was  determined  at  last  to  send  a  fresh  depu- 
tation to  Brussels,  requesting  the  regent  to  order  the 
departure  of  Meghen,  Aremberg,  and  Brederode  from 
Antwerp ;  remonstrating  with  her  against  any  plan  she 
might  be  supposed  to  entertain  of  sending  mercenary 
troops  into  the  city ;  pledging  the  word  of  the  senate  to 
keep  the  peace,  meanwhile,  by  their  regular  force ;  and, 
above  all,  imploring  her  once  more,  in  the  most  urgent 
terms,  to  send  thither  the  burgrave,  as  the  only  man 
who  was  capable  of  saving  the  city  from  the  calamities 
into  which  it  was  so  likely  to  fall.^ 

The  Prince  of  Orange  being  thus  urgently  besought, 
both  by  the  government  of  Antwerp,  the  inhabitants  of 
that  city,  and  by  the  regent  herself,^  at  last  consented 
to  make  the  visit  so  earnestly  demanded.  On  the  13th 
July  he  arrived  in  Antwerp.^    The  whole  city  was  alive 

1  Bor,  ii.  73,  74.     Meteren,  ii.  39".  2  Hopper,  81. 

3  Strada,  v.  202.  Hoofd,  ii.  87.  Correspondanee  de  Marg. 
d'Autriche,  87.     Correspondanee  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  136,  137. 


206  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

with  enthusiasm.  Half  its  population  seemed  to  have 
come  forth  from  the  gates  to  bid  him  welcome,  lining 
the  road  for  miles.  The  gate  through  which  he  was  to 
pass,  the  ramparts,  the  roofs  of  the  houses,  were  packed 
close  with  expectant  and  eager  faces.  At  least  thirty- 
thousand  persons  had  assembled  to  welcome  their 
guest.  A  long  cavalcade  of  eminent  citizens  had  come 
as  far  as  Berghen  to  meet  him  and  to  escort  him  into 
the  city.  Brederode,  attended  by  some  of  the  noble 
confederates,  rode  at  the  head  of  the  procession.  As 
they  encountered  the  prince,  a  discharge  of  pistol-shots 
was  fired  by  way  of  salute,  which  was  the  signal  for  a 
deafening  shout  from  the  assembled  multitude.  The 
crowd  thronged  about  the  prince  as  he  advanced,  calling 
him  their  preserver,  their  father,  their  only  hope.  Wild 
shouts  of  welcome  rose  upon  every  side,  as  he  rode 
through  the  town,  mingled  with  occasional  vociferations 
of  "  Long  life  to  the  beggars !  "  These  party  cries  were 
instantly  and  sharply  rebuked  by  Orange,  who  ex- 
pressed, in  Brederode's  presence,  the  determination  that 
he  would  make  men  unlearn  that  mischievous  watch- 
word.^  He  had,  moreover,  little  relish  at  that  time  for 
the  tumultuous  demonstrations  of  attachment  to  his 
person,  which  were  too  fervid  to  be  censured,  but  too 
unseasonable  to  be  approved.  When  the  crowd  had  at 
last  been  made  to  understand  that  their  huzzas  were 
distasteful  to  the  prince,  most  of  the  multitude  con- 
sented to  disperse,  feeling,  however,  a  relief  from  im- 
pending danger  in  the  presence  of  the  man  to  whom 
they  instinctively  looked  as  their  natural  protector. 
The  senators  had  come  forth  in  a  body  to  receive  the 

1  Bor,  ii.  76.     Strada,  v.  203,    Hopper  (91)  is  no  less  explicit : 
"  des  quelles  le  prince  se  monstroit  fort  f acli6  et  malcontent," 


1566]  ORANGE  AT  ANTWERP  207 

burgrave  and  escort  him  to  the  hotel  prepared  for  him. 
Arrived  there,  he  lost  no  time  in  opening  the  business 
which  had  brought  him  to  Antwerp.  He  held  at  once  a 
long  consultation  with  the  upper  branch  of  the  govern- 
ment. Afterward,  day  after  day,  he  honestly,  arduously, 
sagaciously  labored  to  restore  the  public  tranquillity. 
He  held  repeated  deliberations  with  every  separate  por- 
tion of  the  little  commonwealth — the  senate,  the  council 
of  ancients,  the  corporation  of  ward-masters,  the  deans 
of  trades.  Nor  did  he  confine  his  communication  to 
these  organized  political  bodies  alone.  He  had  frequent 
interviews  with  the  officers  of  the  military  associations, 
with  the  foreign  merchant  companies,  with  the  gilds 
of  ''  rhetoric."  ^  The  chambers  of  the  "  Violet "  and  the 
"Marigold"  were  not  too  frivolous  or  fantastic  to  be 
consulted  by  one  who  knew  human  nature  and  the  con- 
stitution of  Netherland  society  so  well  as  did  the  prince. 
Night  and  day  he  labored  with  all  classes  of  citizens  to 
bring  about  a  better  understanding  and  to  establish 
mutual  confidence.  At  last  by  his  efforts  tranquillity 
was  restored.  The  broad  council  having  been  assembled, 
it  was  decided  that  the  exercise  of  the  Reformed  religion 
should  be  excluded  from  the  city,  but  sUently  tolerated 
in  the  suburbs,  while  an  armed  force  was  to  be  kept 
constantly  in  readiness  to  suppress  all  attempts  at  in- 
surrection. The  prince  had  desired  that  twelve  hundred 
men  should  be  enlisted  and  paid  by  the  city,  so  that  at 
least  a  small  number  of  disciplined  troops  might  be 
ready  at  a  moment's  warning;  but  he  found  it  impos- 
sible" to  carry  the  point  with  the  council.  The  magis- 
trates were  willing  to  hold  themselves  responsible  for  the 
peace  of  the  city,  but  they  would  have  no  mercenaries.^ 

1  Bor,  ii.  76.    Hoofd,  ii.  88.        2  Bor,  ii.  77.    Hoofd,  iii.  88,  89. 


208  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

Thus,  during  the  remainder  of  July  and  the  early- 
part  of  August,  was  William  of  Orange  strenuously 
occupied  in  doing  what  should  have  been  the  regent's 
work.  He  was  still  regarded  both  by  the  duchess  and 
by  the  Calvinist  party— although  having  the  sympathies 
of  neither— as  the  only  man  in  the  Netherlands  who 
could  control  the  rising  tide  of  a  national  revolt.  He 
took  care,  said  his  enemies,  that  his  conduct  at  Antwerp 
should  have  every  appearance  of  loyalty ;  ^  but  they 
insinuated  that  he  was  a  traitor  from  the  beginning, 
who  was  insidiously  fomenting  the  troubles  which  he 
appeared  to  rebuke.  No  one  doubted  his  genius,  and 
all  felt  or  affected  admiration  at  its  display  upon  this 
critical  occasion.  "  The  Prince  of  Orange  is  doing  very 
great  and  notable  services  at  Antwerp  to  the  king  and 
to  the  country,"  said  Assonleville.  '^That  seignior  is 
very  skilful  in  managing  great  affairs."  ^  Margaret  of 
Parma  wrote  letters  to  him  filled  with  the  warmest  grat- 
itude, expressions  of  approbation,  and  of  wishes  that  he 
could  both  remain  in  Antwerp  and  return  to  assist  her 
in  Brussels.^  Philip,  too,  with  his  own  pen,  addressed 
him  a  letter,  in  which  implicit  confidence  in  the  prince's 
character  was  avowed,  all  suspicion  on  the  part  of  the 
sovereign  indignantly  repudiated,  earnest  thanks  for  his 
acceptance  of  the  Antwerp  mission  uttered,  and  a  distinct 
refusal  given  to  the  earnest  request  made  by  Orange  to 
resign  his  offices.*  The  prince  read  or  listened  to  all 
this  commendation,  and  valued  it  exactly  at  its  proper 
worth.     He  knew  it  to  be  pure  grimace.     He  was  no 

1  Bentivoglio,  ii.  37. 

2  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  364. 

3  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  148,  149,  164-166. 

4  Ibid.,  u.  170,  171. 


1566]  LOYALTY  OF  THE  PRINCE  209 

more  deceived  by  it  than  if  he  had  read  the  letter  sent 
by  Margaret  to  Philip,  a  few  weeks  later,  in  which  she 
expressed  herself  as  "  thoroughly  aware  that  it  was  the 
intention  of  Orange  to  take  advantage  of  the  impending 
tumults  for  the  purpose  of  conquering  the  provinces  and 
of  dividing  the  whole  territory  among  himself  and 
friends."  ^  Nothing  could  be  more  utterly  false  than  so 
vile  and  ridiculous  a  statement. 

The  course  of  the  prince  had  hitherto  been,  and  was 
still,  both  consistent  and  loyal.  He  was  proceeding  step 
by  step  to  place  the  monarch  in  the  wrong,  but  the  only 
art  which  he  was  using  was  to  plant  himself  more 
firmly  upon  the  right.  It  was  in  the  monarch's  power 
to  convoke  the  assembly  of  the  States-General,  so  loudly 
demanded  by  the  whole  nation,  to  abolish  the  Inquisi- 
tion, to  renounce  persecution,  to  accept  the  great  fact 
of  the  Reformation.  To  do  so  he  must  have  ceased  to 
be  Philip.  To  have  faltered  in  attempting  to  bring 
him  into  that  path,  the  prince  must  have  ceased  to  be 
William  of  Orange.  Had  he  succeeded,  there  would 
have  been  no  treason  and  no  Republic  of  Holland.  His 
conduct  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Antwerp  troubles  was 
firm  and  sagacious.  Even  had  his  duty  required  him 
to  put  down  the  public  preaching  with  peremptory  vio- 
lence, he  had  been  furnished  with  no  means  to  accom- 
plish the  purpose.  The  rebellion,  if  it  were  one,  was 
already  full-grown.  It  could  not  be  taken  by  the  throat 
and  strangled  with  one  hand,  however  firm. 

A  report  that  the  high  sheriff  of  Brabant  was  collect- 
ing troops  by  command  of  government,  in  order  to 
attack  the  reformers  at  their  field-preachings,  went 
far  to  undo  the  work  already  accomplished  by  the 

I  Strada,  v.  207, 

VOL.  II.— u 


210  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  KEPUBLIC         [1566 

prince.^  The  assemblages  swelled  again  from  ten  or  twelve 
thousand  to  twenty-five  thousand,  the  men  all  providing 
themselves  more  thoroughly  with  weapons  than  before. 
Soon  afterward  the  intemperate  zeal  of  another  indi- 
vidual, armed  to  the  teeth, — not,  however,  like  the  mar- 
tial sheriff  and  his  forces,  with  harquebus  and  javelin, 
but  with  the  still  more  deadly  weapons  of  polemical 
theology,— was  very  near  causing  a  general  outbreak. 
A  peaceful  and  not  very  numerous  congregation  were 
listening  to  one  of  their  preachers  in  a  field  outside  the 
town.  Suddenly  an  unknown  individual,  in  plain  clothes 
and  with  a  pragmatical  demeanor,  interrupted  the  dis- 
course by  giving  a  flat  contradiction  to  some  of  the 
doctrines  advanced.  The  minister  replied  by  a  rebuke, 
and  a  reiteration  of  the  disputed  sentiment.  The 
stranger,  evidently  versed  in  ecclesiastical  matters, 
volubly  and  warmly  responded.  The  preacher,  a  man 
of  humble  condition  and  moderate  abilities,  made  as 
good  show  of  argument  as  he  could,  but  was  evidently 
no  match  for  his  antagonist.  He  was  soon  vanquished 
in  the  wordy  warfare.  Well  he  might  be,  for  it  appeared 
that  the  stranger  was  no  less  a  personage  than  Peter 
Rythovius,  a  doctor  of  divinity,  a  distinguished  pedant 
of  Louvain,  a  relation  of  a  bishop  and  himself  a  church 
dignitary.2  This  learned  professor,  quite  at  home  in 
his  subject,  was  easily  triumphant,  while  the  poor  dis- 
senter, more  accustomed  to  elevate  the  hearts  of  his 
hearers  than  to  perplex  their  heads,  sank  prostrate  and 
breathless  under  the  storm  of  texts,  glosses,  and  hard 
Hebrew  roots  with  which  he  was  soon  overwhelmed. 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  182.    Correspondance  de 
Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  149,  150. 

2  Bor,  ii.  81.    Hoofd,  ui,  89. 


1566]       INTEMPEEATE  ZEAL  OF  DR.  EYTHOVIUS       211 

The  professoi-'s  triumph  was,  however,  but  short-lived, 
for  the  simple-minded  congregation,  who  loved  their 
teacher,  were  enraged  that  he  should  be  thus  confounded. 
Without  more  ado,  therefore,  they  laid  violent  hands 
upon  the  Quixotic  knight  errant  of  the  Church,  and  so 
cudgeled  and  belabored  him  bodily  that  he  might  per- 
haps have  lost  his  life  in  the  encounter  had  he  not  been 
protected  by  the  more  respectable  portion  of  the  as- 
sembly. These  persons,  highly  disapproving  the  whole 
proceeding,  forcibly  rescued  him  from  the  assailants, 
and  carried  him  off  to  town,  where  the  news  of  the 
incident  at  once  created  an  uproar.  Here  he  was  thrown 
into  prison  as  a  disturber  of  the  peace,  but  in  reality 
that  he  might  be  personally  secure.^  The  next  day  the 
Prince  of  Orange,  after  administering  to  him  a  severe 
rebuke  for  his  ill-timed  exhibition  of  pedantry,  released 
him  from  confinement,  and  had  him  conveyed  out 
of  the  city.  "  This  theologian,"  wrote  the  prince  to 
Duchess  Margaret,  *'  would  have  done  better,  methinks, 
to  stay  at  home,  for  I  suppose  he  had  no  especial  orderS 
to  perform  this  piece  of  work."  ^ 

Thus,  so  long  as  this  great  statesman  could  remain 
in  the  metropolis,  his  temperate  firmness  prevented  the 
explosion  which  had  so  long  been  expected.  His  own 
government  of  Holland  and  Zealand,  too,  especially  de- 
manded his  care.  The  field-preaching  had  spread  in 
that  region  with  prodigious  rapidity.  Armed  assem- 
blages, utterly  beyond  the  power  of  the  civil  authorities, 
were  taking  place  daily  in  the  neighborhood  of  Amster- 
dam.3    Yet  the  duchess  could  not  allow  him  to  visit  his 

1  Bor,  Hoofd,  ubi  sup. 

2  Correspondance  de  GuiUaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  181. 

3  Hoofd,  iii.  89,  90, 


212  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

government  in  the  north.  If  he  could  be  spared  from 
Antwerp  for  a  day,  it  was  necessary  that  he  should  aid 
her  in  a  fresh  complication  with  the  confederated  nobles. 
In  the  very  midst,  therefore,  of  his  Antwerp  labors,  he 
had  been  obliged,  by  Margaret's  orders,  to  meet  a  com- 
mittee at  Duffel.i  For  in  this  same  eventful  month  of 
July  a  great  meeting  2  was  held  by  the  members  of  the 
Compromise  at  St.-Trond,  in  the  bishopric  of  Liege. 
They  came  together  on  the  13th  of  the  month,  and 
remained  assembled  till  the  beginning  of  August..  It 
was  a  wild,  tumultuous  convention,  numbering  some 
fifteen  hundred  cavaliers,  each  with  his  esquires  and 
armed  attendants — a  larger  and  more  important  gather- 
ing than  had  yet  been  held.  Brederode  and  Count 
Louis  were  the  chieftains  of  the  assembly,  which,  as 
may  be  supposed  from  its  composition  and  numbers, 
was  likely  to  be  neither  very  orderly  in  its  demonstra- 
tions nor  wholesome  in  its  results.  It  was  an  ill-timed 
movement.  The  convention  was  too  large  for  delibera- 
tion, too  riotous  to  inspire  confidence.  The  nobles 
•quartered  themselves  everywhere  in  the  taverns  and 
the  farm-houses  of  the  neighborhood,  while  large  num- 
bers encamped  upon  the  open  fields.  There  was  a  con- 
stant din  of  reveh-y  and  uproar,  mingled  with  wordy 
warfare,  and  an  occasional  crossing  of  swords.  It 
seemed  rather  like  a  congress  of  ancient,  savage  Bata- 
vians,  assembled  in  Teutonic  fashion  to  choose  a  king 
amid  hoarse  shouting,  deep  drinking,  and  the  clash  of 
spear  and  shield,  than  a  meeting  for  a  lofty  and  earnest 

1  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  148,  149. 

2  Bov,  ii.  78-80.     Hoofd,  iii.  96-98.     Strada,  v.  203-206.     Hop- 
per, Rec.  et  M6m.,  90-96. 


1566]  CONVENTION  AT   ST.-TROND  213 

pui'pose  by  their  civilized  descendants.  A  crowd  of 
spectators,  landlopers,  mendicants,  daily  aggregated 
themselves  to  the  aristocratic  assembly,  joining  with 
natural  unction  in  the  incessant  shout  of  "  Vivent  les 
gueux !  "  It  was  impossible  that  so  soon  after  their  bap- 
tism the  self-styled  beggars  should  repudiate  all  connec- 
tion with  the  time-honored  fraternity  in  which  they  had 
enrolled  themselves. 

The  confederates  discussed—if  an  exchange  of  vocif- 
erations could  be  caUed  discussion— principally  two 
points :  whether,  in  case  they  obtained  the  original  ob- 
jects of  their  petition,  they  should  pause  or  move  still 
further  onward;  and  whether  they  should  insist  upon 
receiving  some  pledge  from  the  government  that  no 
vengeance  shoidd  be  taken  upon  them  for  their  previous 
proceedings.  Upon  both  questions  there  was  much 
vehemence  of  argument  and  gi-eat  difference  of  opinion. 
They,  moreover,  took  two  very  rash  and  very  grave 
resolutions— to  guarantee  the  people  against  all  violence 
on  account  of  their  creeds,  and  to  engage  a  force  of 
German  soldiery,  four  thousand  horse  and  forty  com- 
panies of  infantiy,  by  Wartgeld,  or  retaining-wages.^ 
It  was  evident  that  these  gentlemen  were  disposed  to 
go  fast  and  far.  If  they  had  been  ready  in  the  spring 
to  receive  their  baptism  of  wine,  the  ''beggars"  were 
now  eager  for  the  baptism  of  blood.  At  the  same  time 
it  must  be  observed  that  the  levies  which  they  proposed, 
not  to  make,  but  to  have  at  command,  were  purely  for 
defense.  In  case  the  king,  as  it  was  thought  probable, 
should   visit    the   Netherlands   with   fire    and    sword, 

1  Groen  v,  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  159  sqq.,  167  sqq.,  179. 
Pofltus  Payen  MS. 


214  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

then  there  would  be  a  nucleus  of  resistance  already 
formed. 

Upon  the  18th  July  the  Prince  of  Orange,  at  the 
earnest  request  of  the  regent,  met  a  committee  of  the 
confederated  nobles  at  Duffel.  Count  Egmont  was 
associated  with  him  in  this  duty.  The  conference  was 
not  very  satisfactory.  The  deputies  from  St.-Trond, 
consisting  of  Brederode,  Culemburg,  and  others,  ex- 
changed with  the  two  seigniors  the  old  arguments.  It 
was  urged  upon  the  confederates  that  they  had  made 
themselves  responsible  for  the  public  tranquillity  so 
long  as  the  regent  should  hold  to  her  promise ;  that,  as 
the  duchess  had  sent  two  distinguished  envoys  to  Madrid 
in  order  to  accomplish,  if  possible,  the  wishes  of  the 
nobles,  it  was  their  duty  to  redeem  theii'  own  pledges ; 
that  armed  assemblages  ought  to  be  suppressed  by  their 
efforts  rather  than  encouraged  by  their  example ;  and 
that,  if  they  now  exerted  themselves  zealously  to  check 
the  tumults,  the  duchess  was  ready  to  declare,  in  her 
own  name  and  that  of  his  Majesty,  that  the  presentation 
of  the  Request  had  been  beneficial. 

The  nobles  replied  that  the  pledges  had  become  a 
farce,  that  the  regent  was  playing  them  false,  that  per- 
secution was  as  fierce  as  ever,  that  the  ''Moderation" 
was  a  mockery,  that  the  letters  recommending  "  modesty 
and  discretion  "  to  the  inquisitors  had  been  mere  waste 
paper,  that  a  price  had  been  set  upon  the  heads  of  the 
preachers  as  if  they  had  been  wild  beasts,  that  there 
were  constant  threats  of  invasions  from  Spain,  that  the 
convocation  of  the  States- General  had  been  illegally 
deferred,  that  the  people  had  been  driven  to  despair, 
and  that  it  was  the  conduct  of  government,  not  of  the 
confederates,  which  had  caused  the  reformers  to  throw 


1566]  DUFFEL  CONFERENCE  215 

off  previous  restraint  and  to  come  boldly  forth  by  tens 
of  thousands  into  the  fields,  not  to  defy  their  king,  but 
to  worship  their  God.^ 

Such,  in  brief,  was  the  conference  of  Duffel.  In  con- 
clusion, a  paper  was  drawn  up  which  Brederode  carried 
back  to  the  convention,  and  which  it  was  proposed  to 
submit  to  the  duchess  for  her  approval.  At  the  end  of 
the  month  Louis  of  Nassau  was  accordingly  sent  to 
Brussels,  accompanied  by  twelve  associates,  who  were 
familiarly  called  his  twelve  apostles.^  Here  he  laid 
before  her  Highness  in  council  a  statement  embodying 
the  views  of  the  confederates.  In  this  paper  they  as- 
serted that  they  were  ever  ready  to  mount  and  ride 
against  a  foreign  foe,  but  that  they  would  never  draw  a 
sword  against  their  innocent  countrymen.  They  main- 
tained that  their  past  conduct  deserved  commendation, 
and  that  in  requiring  letters  of  safe-conduct  in  the 
names  both  of  the  duchess  and  of  the  Fleece  Knights 
they  were  governed  not  by  a  disposition  to  ask  for  par- 
don, but  by  a  reluctance  without  such  guaranties  to 
enter  into  stipulations  touching  the  public  tranquillity. 
If,  however,  they  should  be  assured  that  the  intentions 
of  the  regent  were  amicable  and  that  there  was  no 
design  to  take  vengeance  for  the  past ;  if,  moreover,  she 

1  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  129  sqq.  Archives  et 
Correspondanee  (Gr.  v.  Prinst.),  167  sqq.  Renom  de  France  MS., 
i.  17.  Bor,  ii.  78-80.  Hoofd,  iii.  96-98,  Compare  Hopper,  90-96 ; 
Strada,  v.  203-206 ;  Bentivoglio,  ii.  34,  35. 

2  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  120  sqq.,  141  sqq.  The 
date  appears  to  be  the  30th  of  July,  1566.  Vide  Reiffenberg,  Cor- 
respondance, ubi  sup.  ;  Gaehard,  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II., 
437.  According  to  a  letter  of  Count  Louis,  however  (Archives  et 
Correspondanee,  ii.  177-180),  the  Request  would  seem  to  have  been, 
presented  upon  the  26th  of  July  (Strada,  v.  205). 


216  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

were  willing  to  confide  in  the  counsels  of  Horn,  Egmont, 
and  Orange,  and  to  take  no  important  measure  without 
their  concurrence ;  if,  above  all,  she  would  convoke  the 
States-General,  then,  and  then  only,  were  the  confeder- 
ates willing  to  exert  their  energies  to  preserve  peace,  to 
restrain  popular  impetuosity  and  banish  universal  de- 
spair.i 

So  far  Louis  of  Nassau  and  his  twelve  apostles.  It 
must  be  confessed  that,  whatever  might  be  thought  of 
the  justice,  there  could  be  but  one  opinion  as  to  the 
boldness  of  these  views.  The  duchess  was  furious.  If 
the  language  held  in  April  had  been  considered  auda- 
cious, certainly  this  new  request  was,  in  her  own  words, 
"still  more  bitter  to  the  taste  and  more  difficult  of 
digestion."  ^  She  therefore  answered  in  a  very  unsatis- 
factory, haughty,  and  ambiguous  manner,  reserving 
decision  upon  their  propositions  till  they  had  been  dis- 
cussed by  the  state  council,  and  intimating  that  they 
would  also  be  laid  before  the  Knights  of  the  Fleece, 
who  were  to  hold  a  meeting  upon  the  26th  of  August. 

There  was  some  further  conversation,  without  any 
result.  D'Esquerdes  complained  that  the  confederates 
were  the  mark  of  constant  calumny,  and  demanded  that 
the  slanderers  should  be  confronted  with  them  and 
punished.  ''I  understand  perfectly  well,"  interrupted 
Margaret,  "you  wish  to  take  justice  into  your  own 
hands  and  to  be  king  yourself."  ^  It  was  further  inti- 
mated by  these  reckless  gentlemen  that  if  they  should 
be  driven  by  violence  into  measures  of  self -protection, 
they  had  already  secured  friends  in  a  certain  coun- 

1  Hopper,  94,  95.     Hoofd,  iii.  98,     Strada,  v.  205,  206. 

2  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  142. 

3  Renom  de  France  MS.,  i.  18. 


1566]  BITTERNESS  217 

try.^  The  duchess,  probably  astonished  at  the  frankness 
of  this  statement,  is  said  to  have  demanded  further  ex- 
planations. The  confederates  replied  by  observing  that 
they  had  resources  both  in  the  provinces  and  in  Ger- 
many. The  state  council  decided  that  to  accept  the 
propositions  of  the  confederates  would  be  to  establish 
a  triumvirate  at  once,  and  the  duchess  wrote  to  her 
brother  distinctly  advising  against  the  acceptance  of 
the  proposal.^  The  assembly  at  St.-Trond  was  then  dis- 
solved, having  made  violent  demonstrations,  which  were 
not  followed  by  beneficial  results,  and  having  laid  itself 
open  to  various  suspicions,  most  of  which  were  ill 
founded,  while  some  of  them  were  just. 

Before  giving  the  reader  a  brief  account  of  the  open 
and  the  secret  policy  pursued  by  the  government  at 
Brussels  and  Madrid  in  consequence  of  these  transac- 
tions, it  is  now  necessary  to  allude  to  a  startling  series 
of  events  which  at  this  point  added  to  the  complications 
of  the  times  and  exercised  a  fatal  influence  upon  the 
situation  of  the  commonwealth. 

1  Le  Petit,  Grande  Chronique  de  HoUande,  109»,  114''.  Groen  v. 
Prinst.,  Archives,  ii.  167,  168. 

2  Renom  de  France  MS.,  i.  18.  Correspondance  de  Marg. 
d'Autriche,  142. 


CHAPTER  VII 

Ecclesiastical  architecture  in  the  Netherlands— The  image-break- 
ing— Description  of  Antwerp  Cathedral — Ceremony  of  the  Om- 
megang— Precursory  disturbances— Iconoclasts  at  Antwerp— Inci- 
dents of  the  image-breaking  in  various  cities — Events  at  Toumay 
—Preaching  of  Wille— Disturbance  by  a  little  boy— Churches 
sacked  at  Tournay— Disinterment  of  Duke  Adolphus  of  Guelders 
—Iconoclasts  defeated  and  massacred  at  Anchin— Bartholomew's 
day  at  Valenciennes — General  characteristics  of  the  image- 
breaking — Testimony  of  contemporaries  as  to  the  honesty  of  the 
rioters— Consternation  of  the  diichess— Projected  flight  to  Mons 
— Advice  of  Horn  and  other  seigniors — Accord  of  23d   August. 

The  Netherlands  possessed  an  extraordinary  number 
of  churches  and  monasteries.  Their  exquisite  architec- 
ture and  elaborate  decoration  had  been  the  earliest  indi- 
cation of  intellectual  culture  displayed  in  the  country. 
In  the  vast  number  of  cities,  towns,  and  villages  which 
were  crowded  upon  that  narrow  territory,  there  had 
been,  from  circumstances  operating  throughout  Chris- 
tendom, a  great  accumulation  of  ecclesiastical  wealth. 
The  same  causes  can  never  exist  again  which  at  an  early 
day  covered  the  soil  of  Europe  with  those  magnificent 
creations  of  Christian  art.  It  was  in  these  anonymous 
but  entirely  original  achievements  that  Gothic  genius, 
awaking  from  its  long  sleep  of  the  dark  ages,  first  ex- 
pressed itself.  The  early  poetry  of  the  German  races 
was  hewn  and  chiseled  in  stone.     Around  the  steadfast 

218 


1566]  CHUECHES  IN  THE  NETHERLANDS  210 

principle  of  devotion,  then  so  firmly  rooted  in  the  soil, 
clustered  the  graceful  and  vigorous  emanations  of  the 
newly  awakened  mind.  All  that  science  could  invent, 
all  that  art  could  embody,  all  that  mechanical  ingenuity 
could  dare,  all  that  wealth  could  lavish— whatever  there 
was  of  human  energy  which  was  panting  for  pacific  ut- 
terance, wherever  there  stirred  the  vital  principle  which 
instinctively  strove  to  create  and  to  adorn  at  an  epoch 
when  vulgar  violence  and  destructiveness  were  the 
general  tendencies  of  humanity,  all  gathered  around 
these  magnificent  temples,  as  their  aspiring  pinnacles 
at  last  pierced  the  mist  which  had  so  long  brooded  over 
the  world. 

There  were  many  hundreds  of  churches,  more  or  less 
remarkable,  in  the  Netherlands.  Although  a  severe 
criticism  might  regret  to  find  in  these  particular  pro- 
ductions of  the  great  Germanic  school  a  development  of 
that  practical  tendency  which  distinguished  the  Batavian 
and  Flemish  branches;  although  it  might  recognize  a 
departure  from  that  mystic  principle  which,  in  its  efforts 
to  symbolize  the  strivings  of  humanity  toward  the  in- 
finite object  of  worship  above,  had  somewhat  disre- 
garded the  wants  of  the  worshipers  below;  although 
the  spaces  might  be  too  wide  and  the  intercolumnia- 
tions  too  empty,  except  for  the  convenience  of  congre- 
gations, yet  there  were,  nevertheless,  many  ecclesiastical 
masterpieces  which  could  be  regarded  as  very  brilliant 
manifestations  of  the  Batavian  and  Belgic  mind  during 
the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries.  Many  were 
filled  with  paintings  from  a  school  which  had  precedence 
in  time  and  merit  over  its  sister  nurseries  of  art  in  Ger- 
many. All  were  peopled  with  statues.  All  were  filled 
with  profusely  adorned  chapels,  for  the  churches  had 


2^0        TflE  EisH  OF  ^HE  Dutch  hspublic      [1566 

been  enriched  generation  after  generation  by  wealthy 
penitence,  which  had  thus  purchased  absohition  for 
crime  and  smoothed  a  pathway  to  heaven. 

And  now,  for  the  space  of  only  six  or  seven  summer 
days  and  nights,  there  raged  a  storm  by  which  all  these 
treasures  were  destroyed.  Nearly  every  one  of  these 
temples  was  entirely  rifled  of  its  contents ;  not  for  the 
purpose  of  plunder,  but  of  destruction.  Hardly  a  prov- 
ince or  a  town  escaped.  Art  must  forever  weep  over 
this  bereavement;  humanity  must  regret  that  the  re- 
forming is  thus  always  ready  to  degenerate  into  the 
destructive  principle;  but  it  is  impossible  to  censure 
very  severely  the  spirit  which  prompted  the  brutal  but 
not  ferocious  deed.  Those  statues,  associated  as  they 
were  with  the  remorseless  persecution  which  had  so 
long  desolated  the  provinces,  had  ceased  to  be  images. 
They  had  grown  human  and  hateful,  so  that  the  people 
arose  and  devoted  them  to  indiscriminate  massacre. 

No  doubt  the  iconoclastic  fury  is  to  be  regretted,  for 
such  treasures  can  scarcely  be  renewed.  The  age  for 
building  and  decorating  great  cathedrals  is  past.  Cer- 
tainly our  own  age,  practical  and  benevolent,  if  less 
poetical,  should  occupy  itself  with  the  present  and  pro- 
ject itself  into  the  future.  It  should  render  glory  to 
God  rather  by  causing  wealth  to  fertilize  the  lowest 
valleys  of  humanity  than  by  rearing  gorgeous  temples 
where  paupers  are  to  kneel.  To  clothe  the  naked,  re- 
deem the  criminal,  feed  the  hungry,  less  by  alms  and 
homilies  than  by  preventive  institutions  and  beneficent 
legislation ;  above  all,  by  the  diffusion  of  national  edu- 
cation, to  lift  a  race  upon  a  level  of  culture  hardly  at- 
tained by  a  class  in  earlier  times,  is  as  lofty  a  task  as  to 
accumulate  piles  of  ecclesiastical  splendor. 


1566]  ANTWEEP  CATHEDRAL  221 

It  would  be  tedious  to  recount  in  detail  the  events 
which  characterized  the  remarkable  image-breaking  in 
the  Netherlands.  As  Antwerp  was  the  central  point  in 
these  transactions,  and  as  there  was  more  wealth  and 
magnificence  in  the  great  cathedral  of  that  city  than  in 
any  church  of  northern  Europe,  it  is  necessary  to  give 
a  rapid  outline  of  the  events  which  occurred  there. 
From  its  exhibition  in  that  place  the  spirit  everywhere 
will  best  be  shown. 

The  Church  of  Our  Lady,  which  Philip  had  so  recently 
converted  into  a  cathedral,  dated  from  the  year  1124, 
although  it  may  be  more  fairly  considered  a  work  of 
the  fourteenth  century.  Its  college  of  canons  had  been 
founded  in  another  locality  by  Godfrey  of  Bouillon. 
The  Brabantine  hero,  who  so  romantically  incarnated 
the  religious  poetry  of  his  age,  who  first  mounted  the 
walls  of  redeemed  Jerusalem  and  was  its  first  Christian 
monarch,  but  who  refused  to  accept  a  golden  diadem  on 
the  spot  where  the  Saviour  had  been  crowned  with 
thorns ;  the  Fleming  who  lived  and  was  the  epic  which 
the  great  Italian,  centuries  afterward,  translated  into 
immortal  verse,  is  thus  fitly  associated  with  the  beauti- 
ful architectural  poem  which  was  to  grace  his  ancestral 
realms.  The  body  of  the  church— the  interior  and 
graceful  perspectives  of  which  were  not  liable  to  the 
reproach  brought  against  many  Netherland  churches 
of  assimilating  themselves  already  to  the  municipal 
palaces  which  they  were  to  suggest— was  completed  in 
the  fourteenth  century.  The  beautiful  facade,  with  its 
tower,  was  not  completed  till  the  year  1518.  The  ex- 
quisite and  daring  spire,  the  gigantic  stem  upon  which 
the  consummate  flower  of  this  architectural  creation 
was  to  be  at  last  unfolded,  was  a  plant  of  a  whole 


222  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

century's  growth.  Rising  to  a  height  of  nearly  five 
hundred  feet,  over  a  church  of  as  many  feet  in  length, 
it  worthily  represented  the  upward  tendency  of  Gothic 
architecture.  Externally  and  internally  the  cathedral 
was  a  true  expression  of  the  Christian  principle  of  devo- 
tion. Amid  its  vast  accumulation  of  imagery,  its  end- 
less ornaments,  its  multiplicity  of  episodes,  its  infinite 
variety  of  details,  the  central,  maternal  principle  was 
ever  visible.  Everything  pointed  upward,  from  the 
spire  in  the  clouds  to  the  arch  which  enshrined  the 
smallest  sculptured  saint  in  the  chapels  below.  It  was 
a  sanctuary,  not,  like  pagan  temples,  to  inclose  a  visible 
deity,  but  an  edifice  where  mortals  might  worship  an 
unseen  Being  in  the  realms  above. 

The  church,  placed  in  the  center  of  the  city,  with  the 
noisy  streets  of  the  busiest  metropolis  in  Europe  eddy- 
ing around  its  walls,  was  a  sacred  island  in  the  tumul- 
tuous main.  Through  the  perpetual  twilight,  tall 
columnar  trunks  in  thick  profusion  grew  from  a  floor 
checkered  with  prismatic  lights  and  sepulchral  shadows. 
Each  shaft  of  the  petrified  forest  rose  to  a  preternatural 
height,  their  many  branches  intermingling  in  the  space 
above  to  form  an  impenetrable  canopy.  Foliage,  flowers, 
and  fruit  of  colossal  luxuriance,  strange  birds,  beasts, 
grifiins,  and  chimeras  in  endless  multitudes,  the  rank 
vegetation  and  the  fantastic  zoology  of  a  fresher  or 
fabulous  world,  seemed  to  decorate  and  to  animate  the 
serried  trunks  and  pendent  branches,  while  the  shatter- 
ing symphonies  or  dying  murmurs  of  the  organ  sug- 
gested the  rushing  of  the  wind  through  the  forest— now 
the  full  diapason  of  the  storm  and  now  the  gentle 
cadence  of  the  evening  breeze. 

Internally  the  whole  church  was  rich  beyond  expres- 


1566]  ECCLESIASTICAL  WEALTH  223 

sion.  All  that  opulent  devotion  and  inventive  ingenuity 
could  devise,  in  wood,  bronze,  marble,  silver,  gold,  pre- 
cious jewelry,  or  blazing  sacramental  furniture,  had 
been  profusely  lavished.  The  penitential  tears  of  cen- 
turies had  incrusted  the  whole  interior  with  their  glit- 
tering stalactites.  Divided  into  five  naves,  with  external 
rows  of  chapels,  but  separated  by  no  screens  or  parti- 
tions, the  great  temple  forming  an  imposing  whole,  the 
effect  was  the  more  impressive,  the  vistas  almost  infinite 
in  appearance.  The  wealthy  citizens,  the  twenty-seven 
gilds,  the  six  military  associations,  the  rhythmical  col- 
leges, besides  many  other  secular  or  religious  sodalities, 
had  each  their  own  chapels  and  altars.  Tombs  adorned 
with  the  effigies  of  mailed  crusaders  and  pious  dames 
covered  the  floor ;  tattered  banners  hung  in  the  air ;  the 
escutcheons  of  the  Golden  Fleece,  an  order  typical  of 
Flemish  industry,  but  of  which  emperors  and  kings 
were  proud  to  be  the  chevaliers,  decorated  the  columns. 
The  vast  and  beautifully  painted  windows  glowed  with 
scriptural  scenes,  antique  portraits,  homely  allegories, 
painted  in  those  brilliant  and  forgotten  colors  which 
art  has  not  ceased  to  deplore.  The  daylight  melting 
into  gloom  or  colored  with  fantastic  brilliancy,  priests 
in  effulgent  robes  chanting  in  unknown  language,  the 
sublime  breathing  of  choral  music,  the  suffocating  odors 
of  myrrh  and  spikenard,  suggestive  of  the  Oriental 
scenery  and  imagery  of  Holy  Writ,  all  combined  to 
bewilder  and  exalt  the  senses.  The  highest  and  hum- 
blest seemed  to  find  themselves  upon  the  same  level 
within  those  sacred  precincts,  where  even  the  blood- 
stained criminal  was  secure,  and  the  arm  of  secular 
justice  was  paralyzed. 

But  the  work  of  degeneration  had  commenced.     The 


224  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

atmosphere  of  the  cathedral  was  no  longer  holy  in  the 
eyes  of  increasing  multitudes.  Better  the  sanguinary 
rites  of  Belgic  Druids,  better  the  yell  of  slaughtered 
victims  from  the  "wild  wood  without  mercy"  of  the 
pagan  forefathers  of  the  nation,  than  this  fantastic 
intermingling  of  divine  music,  glowing  colors,  gorgeous 
ceremonies,  with  all  the  burning,  beheading,  and  stran- 
gling work  which  had  characterized  the  system  of  human 
sacrifice  for  the  past  half -century. 

Such  was  the  Church  of  Notre  Dame  at  Antwerp. 
Thus  indifferent  or  hostile  toward  the  architectural 
treasure  were  the  inhabitants  of  a  city  where  in  a 
previous  age  the  whole  population  would  have  risked 
their  lives  to  defend  what  they  esteemed  the  pride  and 
garland  of  their  metropolis. 

The  Prince  of  Orange  had  been  anxiously  solicited  by 
the  regent  to  attend  the  conference  at  Duffel.  After 
returning  to  Antwerp,  he  consented,  in  consequence  of 
the  urgent  entreaties  of  the  senate,  to  delay  his  departure 
until  the  18th  of  August  should  be  past.  On  the  13th 
of  that  month  he  had  agreed  with  the  magistrates  upon 
an  ordinance,  which  was  accordingly  published,  and  by 
which  the  preachings  were  restricted  to  the  fields.  A 
deputation  of  merchants  and  others  waited  upon  him 
with  a  request  to  be  permitted  the  exercises  of  the 
Reformed  religion  in  the  city.  This  petition  the  prince 
peremptorily  refused,  and  the  deputies,  as  well  as  their 
constituents,  acquiesced  in  the  decision,  "out  of  espe- 
cial regard  and  respect  for  his  person."  He,  however, 
distinctly  informed  the  duchess  that  it  would  be  diffi- 
cult or  impossible  to  maintain  such  a  position  long,  and 
that  his  departure  from  the  city  w^ould  probably  be  fol- 
lowed by  an  outbreak.     He  warned  her  that  it  was  very 


1566]  THE  STORM  BREWING  225 

imprudent  for  him  to  leave  Antwerp  at  that  particular 
juncture.  Nevertheless,  the  meeting  of  the  Fleece 
Knights  seemed,  in  Margaret's  opinion,  imperatively  to 
require  his  presence  in  Brussels.  She  insisted  by  re- 
peated letters  that  he  should  leave  Antwerp  immediately.^ 
Upon  the  18th  August  the  great  and  time-honored 
ceremony  of  the  Ommegang  occurred.  Accordingly, 
the  great  procession,  the  principal  object  of  which  was 
to  conduct  around  the  city  a  colossal  image  of  the 
Virgin,  issued  as  usual  from  the  door  of  the  cathedral. 
The  image,  bedizened  and  effulgent,  was  borne  aloft 
upon  the  shoulders  of  her  adorers,  followed  by  the 
gilds,  the  military  associations,  the  rhetoricians,  the 
religious  sodalities,  all  in  glittering  costume,  bearing 
blazoned  banners,  and  marching  triumphantly  through 
the  streets  with  sound  of  trumpet  and  beat  of  drum.^ 
The  pageant,  solemn  but  noisy,  was  exactly  such  a  show 
as  was  most  fitted  at  that  moment  to  irritate  Protestant 
minds  and  to  lead  to  mischief.  No  violent  explosion  of 
ill  feeling,  however,  took  place.  The  procession  was 
followed  by  a  rabble  rout  of  scoffers,  but  they  confined 
themselves  to  words  and  insulting  gestures.^  The  image 
was  incessantly  saluted,  as  she  was  borne  along  the 
streets,  with  sneers,  imprecations,  and  the  rudest  ribaldry. 
"  May  ken  !  Mayken !  "  (little  Mary)  "  your  hour  is  come. 
'T  is  your  last  promenade.  The  city  is  tired  of  you." 
Such  were  the  greetings  which  the  representative  of  the 
Holy  Virgin  received  from  men  grown  weary  of  anti- 
quated mummery.     A  few  missiles  were  thrown  occa- 

1  Bor,  ii.  81-83.     Hoofd,  iii.  99.     Correspondance  de  Guillaume 
le  Tacit.,  ii.  188,  189.     Groenv.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  236,  237. 

2  Bor,  ii.  83.     Meteren,  ii.  40. 

3  Bor,  ubi  sup. 

VOL.  II. —15 


226  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

sionally  at  the  procession  as  it  passed  through  the  city, 
but  no  damage  was  inflicted.  When  the  image  was  at 
last  restored  to  its  place,  and  the  pageant  brought  to  a 
somewhat  hurried  conclusion,  there  seemed  cause  for 
congratulation  that  no  tumult  had  occurred. 

On  the  following  morning  there  was  a  large  crowd 
collected  in  front  of  the  cathedral.  The  image,  instead 
of  standing  in  the  center  of  the  church,  where,  upon  all 
former  occasions,  it  had  been  accustomed  during  the 
week  succeeding  the  ceremony  to  receive  congratulatory 
visits,  was  now  ignominiously  placed  behind  an  iron 
railing  within  the  choir.  It  had  been  deemed  imprudent 
to  leave  it  exposed  to  sacrilegious  hands.  The  precau- 
tion excited  derision.  Many  vagabonds  of  dangerous 
appearance,  many  idle  apprentices  and  ragged  urchins 
were  hanging  for  a  long  time  about  the  imprisoned 
image,  peeping  through  the  railings,  and  indulging  in 
many  a  brutal  jest.  '^  Mayken !  Mayken !  "  they  cried, 
"  art  thou  terrified  so  soon  ?  Hast  flown  to  thy  nest  so 
early  ?  Dost  think  thyself  beyond  the  reach  of  mischief  ? 
Beware,  Mayken !  thine  hour  is  fast  approaching ! " 
Others  thronged  around  the  balustrade,  shouting  ''Vi- 
vent  les  gueux !  "  and  hoarsely  commanding  the  image  to 
join  in  the  beggars'  cry.  Then,  leaving  the  spot,  the  mob 
roamed  idly  about  the  magnificent  church,  sneering  at 
the  idols,  execrating  the  gorgeous  ornaments,  scofiiug 
at  crucifix  and  altar. 

Presently  one  of  the  rabble,  a  ragged  fellow  of 
mechanical  aspect,  in  a  tattered  black  doublet  and  an 
old  straw  hat,  ascended  the  pulpit.  Opening  a  sacred 
volume  which  he  found  there,  he  began  to  deliver  an 
extemporaneous  and  coarse  caricature  of  a  monkish 
sermon.     Some  of  the  bystanders  applauded,  some  cried 


THE    MOB    IN    THE   CATHEDRAL   OF   ANTWERP. 
Drawing  by  II.  Knackfuss. 


1566]  TUMULT  227 

"  Shame !  "  some  shouted  "  Long  live  the  beggars !  "  some 
threw  sticks  and  rubbish  at  the  mountebank,  some 
caught  him  by  the  legs  and  strove  to  pull  him  from  the 
place.  He,  on  the  other  hand,  manfully  maintained  his 
ground,  hurling  back  every  missile,  struggling  with 
his  assailants,  and  continuing  the  while  to  pour  forth  a 
malignant  and  obscene  discourse.  At  last  a  young 
sailor,  warm  in  the  Catholic  faith,  and  impulsive  as. 
mariners  are  prone  to  be,  ascended  the  pulpit  from 
behind,  sprang  upon  the  mechanic,  and  flung  him  head- 
long down  the  steps.  The  preacher  grappled  with  his 
enemy  as  he  fell,  and  both  came  rolling  to  the  ground. 
Neither  was  much  injured,  but  a  tumult  ensued.  A 
pistol-shot  was  fired,  and  the  sailor  wounded  in  the  arm. 
Daggers  were  drawn,  cudgels  brandished,  the  bystanders 
taking  part  generally  against  the  sailor,  while  those 
who  protected  him  were  somewhat  bruised  and  be- 
labored before  they  could  convey  him  out  of  the  church. 
Nothing  more,  however,  transpired  that  day,  and  the 
keepers  of  the  cathedral  were  enabled  to  expel  the 
crowd  and  to  close  the  doors  for  the  night.^ 

Information  of  this  tumult  was  brought  to  the  senate, 
then  assembled  in  the  Hotel  de  Ville.  That  body  was 
thrown  into  a  state  of  great  perturbation.  In  losing 
the  Prince  of  Orange  they  seemed  to  have  lost  their 
own  brains,  and  the  first  measure  which  they  took  was 
to  despatch  a  messenger  to  implore  his  return.  In  the 
meantime  it  was  necessary  that  they  should  do  some- 
thing for  themselves.  It  was  evident  that  a  storm  was 
brewing.  The  pest  which  was  sweeping  so  rapidly 
through  the  provinces  would  soon  be  among  them. 
Symptoms  of  the  dreaded  visitation  were  already  but 

1  Bor,  ii.  83.     Hoofd,  iii.  99.     Strada,  v.  211.    Meteren,  40. 


228  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

too  manifest.  What  precaution  should  they  take? 
Should  they  issue  a  proclamation?  Such  documents 
had  been  too  common  of  late,  and  had  lost  their  virtue. 
It  was  the  time  not  to  assert  but  to  exercise  authority. 
Should  they  summon  the  ward-masters,  and  order  the 
instant  arming  and  mustering  of  their  respective  com- 
panies? Should  they  assemble  the  captains  of  the 
military  associations  ?  Nothing  better  could  have  been 
desired  than  such  measures  in  cases  of  invasion  or  of 
ordinary  tumult,  but  who  should  say  how  deeply  the 
poison  had  sunk  into  the  body  politic,  who  should  say 
with  how  much  or  how  little  alacrity  the  burgher  militia 
would  obey  the  mandates  of  the  magistracy  ?  It  would 
be  better  to  issue  no  proclamation  unless  they  could 
enforce  its  provisions ;  it  would  be  better  not  to  call  out 
the  citizen  soldiery  unless  they  were  likely  to  prove 
obedient.  Should  mercenary  troops  at  this  late  hour 
be  sent  for  ?  Would  not  their  appearance  at  this  crisis 
rather  inflame  the  rage  than  intimidate  the  insolence  of 
the  sectaries  ?  Never  were  magistrates  in  greater  per- 
plexity. They  knew  not  what  course  was  likely  to 
prove  the  safest,  and,  in  their  anxiety  to  do  nothing 
wrong,  the  senators  did  nothing  at  all.  After  a  long 
and  anxious  consultation  the  honest  burgomaster  and 
his  associates  all  went  home  to  their  beds,  hoping  that 
the  threatening  flame  of  civil  tumult  would  die  out  of 
itself,  or  perhaps  that  their  dreams  would  supply  them 
with  that  wisdom  which  seemed  denied  to  their  waking 
hours.i 

In  the  morning,  as  it  was  known  that  no  precaution 
had  been  taken,  the  audacity  of  the  reformers  was 
naturally   increased.     Within   the    cathedral   a   great 
1  Bor,  ii.  83,  84.     Hoofd,  iii.  99. 


1566]  A  VULGAR  RIOT  229 

crowd  was  at  an  early  hour  collected,  whose  savage 
looks  and  ragged  appearance  denoted  that  the  day  and 
night  were  not  likely  to  pass  away  so  peacefully  as  the 
last.  The  same  taunts  and  imprecations  were  hurled 
at  the  image  of  the  Virgin ;  the  same  howling  of  the 
beggars'  cry  resounded  through  the  lofty  arches.  For  a 
few  hours  no  act  of  violence  was  committed,  but  the 
crowd  increased.  A  few  trifles,  drifting,  as  usual, 
before  the  event,  seemed  to  indicate  the  approaching 
convulsion.  A  very  paltry  old  woman  excited  the 
image-breaking  of  Antwerp.  She  had  for  years  been 
accustomed  to  sit  before  the  door  of  the  cathedral  with 
wax  tapers  and  wafers,  earning  a  scanty  subsistence 
from  the  profits  of  her  meager  trade,  and  by  the  small 
coins  which  she  sometimes  received  in  charity.  Some 
of  the  rabble  began  to  chaffer  with  this  ancient  huck- 
steress.  They  scoffed  at  her  consecrated  wares;  they 
bandied  with  her  ribald  jests,  of  which  her  public  posi- 
tion had  furnished  her  with  a  supply;  they  assured 
her  that  the  hour  had  come  when  her  idolatrous  traffic 
was  to  be  forever  terminated,  when  she  and  her  patron- 
ess, Mary,  were  to  be  given  over  to  destruction  together. 
The  old  woman,  enraged,  answered  threat  with  threat, 
and  gibe  with  gibe.  Passing  from  words  to  deeds,  she 
began  to  catch  from  the  ground  every  offensive  missile 
or  weapon  which  she  could  find,  and  to  lay  about  her 
in  all  directions.  Her  tormentors  defended  themselves 
as  they  could.  Having  destroyed  her  whole  stock  in 
trade,  they  provoked  others  to  appear  in  her  defense. 
The  passers-by  thronged  to  the  scene ;  the  cathedral 
was  soon  filled  to  overflowing;  a  furious  tumult  was 
already  in  progress.^ 

1  Bor,  ii,  83.     Hoofd,  iii.  100.     Meteren,  ii.  40. 


230  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

Many  persons  fled  in  alarm  to  the  town  house,  carry- 
ing information  of  this  outbreak  to  the  magistrates. 
John  van  Immerzeel,  Margrave  of  Antwerp,  was  then 
holding  communication  with  the  senate,  and  awaiting 
the  arrival  of  the  ward-masters,  whom  it  had  at  last  been 
thought  expedient  to  summon.  Upon  intelligence  of 
this  riot,  which  the  militia,  if  previously  mustered, 
might  have  prevented,  the  senate  determined  to  proceed 
to  the  cathedral  in  a  body,  with  the  hope  of  quelling 
the  mob  by  the  dignity  of  their  presence.  The  mar- 
grave, who  was  the  high  executive  officer  of  the  little 
commonwealth,  marched  down  to  the  cathedral  accord- 
ingly, attended  by  the  two  burgomasters  and  all  the 
senators.  At  first  their  authority,  solicitations,  and 
personal  influence  produced  a  good  effect.  Some  of  those 
outside  consented  to  retire,  and  the  tumult  partially  sub- 
sided within.  As  night,  however,  was  fast  approaching, 
many  of  the  mob  insisted  upon  remaining  for  evening 
mass.  They  were  informed  that  there  would  be  none 
that  night,  and  that  for  once  the  people  could  certainly 
dispense  with  their  vespers. 

Several  persons  now  manifesting  an  intention  of  leav- 
ing the  cathedral,  it  was  suggested  to  the  senators  that 
if  they  should  lead  the  way,  the  populace  would  follow 
in  their  train,  and  so  disperse  to  their  homes.  The  ex- 
cellent magistrates  took  the  advice,  not  caring,  perhaps, 
to  fulfil  any  longer  the  dangerous  but  not  dignified 
functions  of  police  officers.  Before  departing,  they 
adopted  the  precaution  of  closing  all  the  doors  of  the 
church,  leaving  a  single  one  open,  that  the  rabble  still 
remaining  might  have  an  opportunity  to  depart.  It 
seemed  not  to  occur  to  the  senators  that  the  same  gate 
would  as  conveniently  afford  an  entrance  for  those  with- 


1566]  THE  HUERICANE  231 

out  as  an  egress  for  those  within.  That  unlooked-for 
event  happened,  however.  No  sooner  had  the  magis- 
trates retired  than  the  rabble  burst  through  the  single 
door  which  had  been  left  open,  overpowered  the  mar- 
grave, who,  with  a  few  attendants,  had  remained  behind, 
vainly  endeavoring  by  threats  and  exhortations  to  ap- 
pease the  tumult,  drove  him  ignominiously  from  the 
church,  and  threw  all  the  other  portals  wide  open.  Then 
the  populace  flowed  in  like  an  angry  sea.  The  whole  of 
the  cathedral  was  at  the  mercy  of  the  rioters,  who  were 
evidently  bent  on  mischief.  The  wardens  and  trea- 
surers of  the  church,  after  a  vain  attempt  to  secure  a 
few  of  its  most  precious  possessions,  retired.  They 
carried  the  news  to  the  senators,  who,  accompanied  by 
a  few  halberdmen,  again  ventured  to  approach  the  spot. 
It  was  but  for  a  moment,  however,  for,  appalled  by  the 
furious  sounds  which  came  from  within  the  church,  as 
if  subterranean  and  invisible  forces  were  preparing  a 
catastrophe  which  no  human  power  could  withstand, 
the  magistrates  fled  precipitately  from  the  scene.  Fear- 
ing that  the  next  attack  would  be  upon  the  town  house, 
they  hastened  to  concentrate  at  that  point  their  avail- 
able forces,  and  left  the  stately  cathedral  to  its  fate.^ 

And  now,  as  the  shadows  of  night  were  deepening 
the  perpetual  twilight  in  the  church,  the  work  of  de- 
struction commenced.  Instead  of  evening  mass  rose  the 
fierce  music  of  a  psalm,  yelled  by  a  thousand  angry 
voices.  It  seemed  the  preconcerted  signal  for  a  general 
attack.  A  band  of  marauders  flew  upon  the  image  of 
the  Virgin,  dragged  it  forth  from  its  receptacle,  plunged 
daggers  into  its  inanimate  body,  tore  off  its  jeweled 

1  Bor,  ii.  83,  84.  Hoofd,  iii.  100  sqq.  Strada,  v.  212. 
Meteren,  ii.  40. 


232  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

and  embroidered  garments,  broke  the  whole  figure  into 
a  thousand  pieces,  and  scattered  the  fragments  along 
the  floor.  A  wild  shout  succeeded,  and  then  the  work, 
which  seemed  delegated  to  a  comparatively  small  num- 
ber of  the  assembled  crowd,  went  on  with  incredible 
celerity.  Some  were  armed  with  axes,  some  with  bludg- 
eons, some  with  sledge-hammers;  others  brought  lad- 
ders, pulleys,  ropes,  and  levers.  Every  statue  was 
hurled  from  its  niche,  every  picture  torn  from  the 
wall,  every  wonderfully  painted  window  shivered  to 
atoms,  every  ancient  monument  shattered,  every  sculp- 
tured decoration,  however  inaccessible  in  appearance, 
hurled  to  the  ground.  Indefatigably,  audaciously,  en- 
dowed, as  it  seemed,  with  preternatural  strength  and 
nimbleness,  these  furious  iconoclasts  clambered  up  the 
dizzy  heights,  shrieking  and  chattering  like  malignant 
apes,  as  they  tore  off  in  triumph  the  slowly  matured 
fruit  of  centuries.  In  a  space  of  time  wonderfully 
brief  they  had  accomplished  their  task. 

A  colossal  and  magnificent  group  of  the  Saviour 
crucified  between  two  thieves  adorned  the  principal 
altar.  The  statue  of  Christ  was  wrenched  from  its 
place  with  ropes  and  puUej^s,  while  the  malefactors, 
with  bitter  and  blasphemous  irony,  were  left  on  high, 
the  only  representatives  of  the  marble  crowd  which  had 
been  destroyed.  A  very  beautiful  piece  of  architecture 
decorated  the  choir— the  "repository,"  as  it  was  called, 
in  which  the  body  of  Christ  was  figuratively  enshrined. 
This  much-admired  work  rested  upon  a  single  column, 
but  rose,  arch  upon  arch,  pillar  upon  pillar,  to  the  height 
of  three  hundred  feet,  till  quite  lost  in  the  vault  above.^ 
"It  was  now  shattered  into   a  million  pieces."    The 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1566]  PRETERHUMAN  MISCHIEF  233 

statues,  images,  pictures,  ornaments,  as  they  lay  upon 
the  ground,  were  broken  with  sledge-hammers,  hewn 
with  axes,  trampled,  torn,  and  beaten  into  shreds.  A 
troop  of  harlots,  snatching  waxen  tapers  from  the  altars, 
stood  around  the  destroyers  and  lighted  them  at  their 
work.  Nothing  escaped  their  omnivorous  rage.  They 
desecrated  seventy  chapels,  forced  open  all  the  chests 
of  treasure,  covered  their  own  squalid  attire  with  the 
gorgeous  robes  of  the  ecclesiastics,  broke  the  sacred 
bread,  poured  out  the  sacramental  wine  into  golden 
chalices,  quaffing  huge  draughts  to  the  beggars'  health, 
burned  all  the  splendid  missals  and  manuscripts,  and 
smeared  their  shoes  with  the  sacred  oil  with  which 
kings  and  prelates  had  been  anointed.  It  seemed  that 
each  of  these  malicious  creatures  must  have  been  en- 
dowed with  the  strength  of  a  hundred  giants.  How 
else,  in  the  few  brief  hours  of  a  midsummer  night, 
could  such  a  monstrous  desecration  have  been  accom- 
plished by  a  troop  which,  according  to  all  accounts,  was 
not  more  than  one  hundred  in  number  ?  i  There  was  a 
multitude  of  spectators,  as  upon  all  such  occasions,  but 
the  actual  spoilers  were  very  few. 

The  noblest  and  richest  temple  of  the  Netherlands 
was  a  wreck,  but  the  fury  of  the  spoilers  was  excited, 
not  appeased.  Each  seizing  a  burning  torch,  the  whole 
herd  rushed  from  the  cathedral,  and  swept  howling 
through  the  streets.  "  Long  live  the  beggars ! "  re- 
sounded through  the  sultry  midnight  air,  as  the  rave- 
nous pack  flew  to  and  fro,  smiting  every  image  of  the 
Virgin,  every  crucifix,  every  sculptured  saint,   every 

1  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  183.  Compare  Hopper, 
Rec.  et  M^m.,  97 ;  Strada,  v.  213 ;  Hoofd,  iii.  101 ;  Burgon,  ii. 
137-141 ;  Bor,  ii.  84 ;  Meteren,  ii.  40 ;  Bentivoglio,  ii.  35,  36. 


234  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

Catholic  symbol  wliich  they  met  with  upon  their  path. 
All  night  long  they  roamed  from  one  sacred  edifice  to 
another,  thoroughly  destroying  as  they  went.  Before 
morning  they  had  sacked  thirty  churches  within  the 
city  walls.  They  entered  the  monasteries,  burned  their 
invaluable  libraries,  destroyed  their  altars,  statues,  pic- 
tures, and  descending  into  the  cellars,  broached  every 
cask  which  they  found  there,  pouring  out  in  one  great 
flood  all  the  ancient  wine  and  ale  with  which  those  holy 
men  had  been  wont  to  solace  their  retirement  from 
generation  to  generation.  They  invaded  the  nunneries, 
whence  the  occupants,  panic-stricken,  fled  for  refuge  to 
the  houses  of  their  friends  and  kindred.  The  streets 
were  filled  with  monks  and  nuns,  running  this  way  and 
that,  shrieking  and  fluttering,  to  escape  the  claws  of 
these  fiendish  Calvinists.^  The  terror  was  imaginary, 
for  not  the  least  remarkable  feature  in  these  transac- 
tions was  that  neither  insult  nor  injury  was  offered  to 
man  or  woman,  and  that  not  a  farthing's  value  of  the 
immense  amount  of  property  destroyed  was  appropri- 
ated. It  was  a  war  not  against  the  living,  but  against 
graven  images,  nor  was  the  sentiment  which  prompted 
the  onslaught  in  the  least  commingled  with  a  desire  of 
plunder.  The  principal  citizens  of  Antwerp,  expecting 
every  instant  that  the  storm  would  be  diverted  from  the 
ecclesiastical  edifices  to  private  dwellings,  and  that  rob- 
bery, rape,  and  murder  would  follow  sacrilege,  remained 

1  Strada,  v.  215.  Hoofd,  Bor,  ubi  sup.  "Vous  eussiez  veu," 
says  Pontus  Payen,  "les  pauvres  nonains  sortir  de  leurs  monas- 
tferes  en  habits  deguisez  et  les  aueunes  a  demye  couvertes, 
se  sauver  en  maisons  de  leurs  parens  et  amis,  et  les  prestres  et 
Moines  couroient  que  5a  et  que  1^,  fuians  les  griffes  de  ces  malins 
reform6s,"  etc.— MS.,  liv.  ii. 


1566]  DURATION  OF   THE  HAVOC  235 

all  night  expecting  the  attack,  and  prepared  to  defend 
their  hearths,  even  if  the  altars  were  profaned.  The 
precaution  was  needless.  It  was  asserted  by  the  Catho- 
lics that  the  confederates  and  other  opulent  Protestants 
had  organized  this  company  of  profligates  for  the  meager 
pittance  of  ten  stivers  a  day.  On  the  other  hand,  it  was 
believed  by  many  that  the  Catholics  had  themselves 
plotted  the  whole  outrage  in  order  to  bring  odium  upon 
the  reformers.  Both  statements  were  equally  un- 
founded. The  task  was  most  thoroughly  performed, 
but  it  was  prompted  by  a  furious  fanaticism,  not  by 
baser  motives.^ 

Two  days  and  nights  longer  the  havoc  raged  un- 
checked through  all  the  churches  of  Antwerp  and  the 
neighboring  villages.  Hardly  a  statue  or  picture  es- 
caped destruction.  Fortunately,  the  illustrious  artist 
whose  labors  were  destined  in  the  next  generation  to 
enrich  and  ennoble  the  city,  Rubens,  most  profound  of 
colorists,  most  dramatic  of  artists,  whose  profuse  tropi- 
cal genius  seemed  to  flower  the  more  luxuriantly,  as  if 
the  destruction  wrought  by  brutal  hands  were  to  be 
compensated  by  the  creative  energy  of  one  divine  spirit, 
had  not  yet  been  born.  Of  the  treasures  which  existed 
the  destruction  was  complete.  Yet  the  rage  was  directed 
exclusively  against  stocks  and  stones.  Not  a  man  was 
wounded  nor  a  woman  outraged.  Prisoners,  indeed, 
who  had  been  languishing  hopelessly  in  dungeons  were 
liberated.  A  monk  who  had  been  in  the  prison  of  the 
Barefoot  Monastery  for  twelve  years  recovered  his 
freedom.  Art  was  trampled  in  the  dust,  but  humanity 
deplored  no  victims.^ 

1  Burgon,  ii.  137-141.     Bor,  ii.  89.    Hoofd,  iii.  101.    Hopper,  97. 
'  Meteren,  ii.  40.     Bor,  ii.  84.     Strada,  v.  215,  216. 


236  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

These  leading  features  characterized  the  movement 
everywhere.  The  process  was  simultaneous  and  almost 
universal.  It  was  difficult  to  say  where  it  began  and 
where  it  ended.  A  few  days  in  the  midst  of  August 
sufficed  for  the  whole  work.  The  number  of  churches 
desecrated  has  never  been  counted.  In  the  single 
province  of  Flanders  four  hundred  were  sacked,  i  In 
Limburg,  Luxemburg,  and  Namur  ^  there  was  no  image- 
breaking.  In  Mechlin  seventy  or  eighty  persons  ac- 
complished the  work  thoroughly,  in  the  very  teeth  of 
the  Grand  Council  and  of  an  astonished  magistracy.^ 

In  Tournay,  a  city  distinguished  for  its  ecclesiastical 
splendor,  the  reform  had  been  making  great  progress 
during  the  summer.  At  the  same  time  the  hatred 
between  the  two  religions  had  been  growing  more  and 
more  intense.  Trifles  and  serious  matters  alike  fed  the 
mutual  animosity. 

A  tremendous  outbreak  had  been  nearly  occasioned 
by  an  insignificant  incident.  A  Jesuit  of  some  notoriety 
had  been  preaching  a  glowing  discourse  in  the  pulpit  of 
Notre  Dame.  He  earnestly  avowed  his  wish  that  he 
were  good  enough  to  die  for  all  his  hearers.  He  proved 
to  demonstration  that  no  man  should  shrink  from  tor- 
ture or  martyrdom  in  order  to  sustain  the  ancient  faith. 
As  he  was  thus  expatiating,  his  fervid  discourse  was 
suddenly  interrupted  by  three  sharp,  sudden  blows,  of 
a  very  peculiar  character,  struck  upon  the  great  portal 
of  the  church.     The  priest,  forgetting  his  love  for  mar- 

1  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  183. 

2  Hoofd,  iii.  103. 

3  Pontus  Payen  MS.  According  to  Renom  de  France,  the  work 
was  done  by  thirty  or  forty  "personnes  de  nuUe  quality."— MS.,  i. 
c.  20. 


1566]  THE  TOURNAY  DRAMA  237 

tyrdom,  turned  pale  and  dropped  under  the  pulpit. 
Hurrying  down  the  steps,  he  took  refuge  in  the  vestry, 
locking  and  barring  the  door.  The  congregation  shared 
in  his  panic.  "  The  beggars  are  coming ! "  was  the 
general  cry.  There  was  a  horrible  tumult,  which  ex- 
tended through  the  city  as  the  congregation  poured 
precipitately  out  of  the  cathedral  to  escape  a  band  of 
destroying  and  furious  Calvinists.  Yet  when  the  shock 
had  a  little  subsided,  it  was  discovered  that  a  small 
urchin  was  the  cause  of  the  whole  tumult.  Having 
been  bathing  in  the  Schelde,  he  had  returned  by  way  of 
the  church  with  a  couple  of  bladders  under  his  arm. 
He  had  struck  these  against  the  door  of  the  cathedral, 
partly  to  dry  them,  partly  from  a  love  of  mischief. 
Thus  a  great  uproar,  in  the  course  of  which  it  had  been 
feared  that  Tournay  was  to  be  sacked  and  drenched  in 
blood,  had  been  caused  by  a  little  wanton  boy  who  had 
been  swimming  on  bladders.^ 

This  comedy  preceded  by  a  few  days  only  the  actual 
disaster.  On  the  22d  of  August  the  news  reached 
Tournay  that  the  churches  in  Antwerp,  Ghent,  and 
many  other  places  had  been  sacked.  There  was  an 
instantaneous  movement  toward  imitating  the  example 
on  the  same  evening.  Pasquier  de  la  Barre,  procureur- 
general  of  the  city,  succeeded  by  much  entreaty  in 
tranquillizing  the  people  for  the  night.  The  "  guard  of 
terror"  was  set,  and  hopes  were  entertained  that  the 
storm  might  blow  over.  The  expectation  was  vain.  At 
daybreak  next  day  the  mob  swept  upon  the  churches 
and  stripped  them  to  the  very  walls.  Pictures,  statues, 
organs,  ornaments,  chalices  of  silver  and  gold,  reli- 
quaries, albs,  chasubles,  copes,  ciboria,  crosses,  chan- 

1  De  la  Barre  MS.,  26,  27. 


238  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

deliers,  lamps,  censers,  all  of  richest  material,  glittering 
with  pearls,  rubies,  and  other  precious  stones,  were  scat- 
tered in  heaps  of  ruin  upon  the  ground.^ 

As  the  spoilers  burrowed  among  the  ancient  tombs, 
they  performed,  in  one  or  two  instances,  acts  of  startling 
posthumous  justice.  The  embalmed  body  of  Duke 
Adolphus  of  Guelders,  last  of  the  Egmonts,  who  had 
reigned  in  that  province,  was  dragged  from  its  sepulcher 
and  recognized.2  Although  it  had  been  there  for  ninety 
years,  it  was  as  uncorrupted,  "owing  to  the  excellent 
spices  which  had  preserved  it  from  decay,"  ^  as  upon 
the  day  of  burial.  Thrown  upon  the  marble  floor  of 
the  church,  it  lay  several  days  exposed  to  the  execra- 
tions of  the  multitude.*  The  duke  had  committed  a 
crime  against  his  father,  in  consequence  of  which  the 
province,  which  had  been  ruled  by  native  races,  had 
passed  under  the  dominion  of  Charles  the  Bold.  Weary 
of  waiting  for  the  old  duke's  inheritance,  he  had  risen 
against  him  in  open  rebellion.  Dragging  him  from  his 
bed  at  midnight  in  the  depth  of  winter,  he  had  com- 
pelled the  old  man,  with  no  covering  but  his  night-gear, 
to  walk  with  naked  feet  twenty-five  miles  over  ice  and 
snow  from  Grave  to  Buren,  while  he  himself  performed 
the  same  journey  in  his  company  on  horseback.  He 
had  then  thrown  him  into  a  dungeon  beneath  the  tower 
of  Buren  Castle,  and  kept  him  a  close  prisoner  for  six 
months.^    At  last  the  Duke  of  Burgundy  summoned 

^  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  33. 

2  Nic.  Burgundi,  Hist.  Belg.  (Ingolstadt,  1629),  iii.  315-318. 

3  Pontus  Payen  MS.  *  Ibid. 

5  M^moires  de  Philippe  de  Comines  (Lond.  et  Paris,  1747),  liv. 
iv.  194-196.  In  the  Royal  Gallery  at  Berlin  is  a  startling  picture 
by  Rembrandt,  in  which  the  old  duke  is  represented  looking  out 


1566]         DISINTERMENT  OF  DUKE  ADOLPHUS  239 

the  two  before  his  council,  and  proposed  that  Adolphus 
should  allow  his  father  six  thousand  florins  annually, 
with  the  title  of  duke  till  his  death.  "  He  told  us,"  said 
Comines,  ''that  he  would  sooner  throw  the  old  man 
head  foremost  down  a  well  and  jump  in  himself  after- 
ward. His  father  had  been  duke  forty-four  years,  and 
it  was  time  for  him  to  retire."  Adolphus,  being  thus 
intractable,  had  been  kept  in  prison  till  after  the  death 
of  Charles  the  Bold.  To  the  memorable  insurrection 
of  Ghent,  in  the  time  of  the  Lady  Mary,  he  owed  his 
liberty.  The  insurgent  citizens  took  him  from  prison, 
and  caused  him  to  lead  them  in  their  foray  against 
Tournay.i  Beneath  the  walls  of  that  city  he  was  slain, 
and  buried  under  its  cathedral.  And  now,  as  if  his 
offense  had  not  been  sufficiently  atoned  for  by  the  loss 
of  his  ancestral  honors,  his  captivity,  and  his  death,  the 
earth,  after  the  lapse  of  nearly  a  century,  had  cast  him 
forth  from  her  bosom.  There,  once  more  beneath  the 
sunlight,  amid  a  ribald  crew  of  a  later  generation  which 
had  still  preserved  the  memory  of  his  sin,  lay  the  body 
of  the  more  than  parricide,  whom  "excellent  spices" 
had  thus  preserved  from  corruption,  only  to  be  the 
mark  of  scorn  and  demoniac  laughter.^ 

A  large  assemblage  of  rioters,  growing  in  numbers  as 
they  advanced,  swept  over  the  province  of  Tournay, 
after  accomplishing  the  sack  of  the  city  churches. 
Armed  with  halberds,  hammers,  and  pitchforks,  they 

of  the  bars  of  his  dimgeon  at  his  son,  who  is  threatening  him  with 
uplifted  hand  and  savage  face.  No  subject  could  be  imagined  bet- 
ter adapted  to  the  gloomy  and  sarcastic  genius  of  that  painter. 

1  M^moires  de  Philippe  de  Comines  (Lond.  et  Paris,  1747),  liv. 
iv.  194-196. 

2  Nic.  Burgundi,  ubi  sup.  Pontus  Payen  MS.  G.  Brandt,  i. 
355,  356. 


240  THE  RISE  OF  THE   DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

carried  on  the  war,  day  after  day,  against  the  images. 
At  the  convent  of  Marchiennes,  considered  by  contem- 
poraries the  most  beautiful  abbey  in  all  the  Netherlands, 
they  halted  to  sing  the  Ten  Commandments  in  Marot's 
verse.  Hardly  had  the  vast  chorus  finished  the  precept 
against  graven  images : 

Tailler  ne  te  feras  imaige 

De  quelque  chose  que  ce  soit, 
Sy  honneur  luy  fais  ou  liommaige, 

Bon  Dieu  jalousie  en  re9oit, 

when  the  whole  mob  seemed  seized  with  sudden  mad- 
ness. Without  waiting  to  complete  the  psalm,  they 
fastened  upon  the  company  of  marble  martyrs  as  if 
they  had  possessed  sensibility  to  feel  the  blows  inflicted. 
In  an  hour  they  had  laid  the  whole  in  ruins.i 

Having  accomplished  this  deed,  they  swept  on  toward 
Anchin.  Here,  however,  they  were  confronted  by  the 
Seigneur  de  la  Tour,  who,  at  the  head  of  a  small  com- 
pany of  peasants,  attacked  the  marauders  and  gained  a 
complete  victory.  Five  or  six  hundred  of  them  were 
slain,  others  were  drowned  in  the  river  and  adjacent 
swamps,  the  rest  were  dispersed.^  It  was  thus  proved 
that  a  little  more  spirit  upon  the  part  of  the  orderly 
portion  of  the  inhabitants  might  have  brought  about  a 
different  result  than  the  universal  image-breaking. 

In  Valenciennes  the  ''tragedy,"  as  an  eye-witness 
calls  it,  was  performed  upon  St.  Bartholomew's  day. 
It  was,  however,  only  a  tragedy  of  statues.  Hardly  as 
many  senseless  stones  were  victims  as  there  were  to  be 
living  Huguenots  sacrificed  in  a  single  city  upon  a 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.,  ii. 

2  Ibid.     Hopper,  98,  99. 


1566]  SOUECE  OF  THE   TUMULTS  241 

Bartholomew  which  was  fast  approaching.     In  the  Va- 
lenciennes massacre  not  a  human  being  was  injured. 

Such  in  general  outline  and  in  certain  individual 
details  was  the  celebrated  iconomachy  of  the  Nether- 
lands. The  movement  was  a  sudden  explosion  of  pop- 
ular revenge  against  the  symbols  of  that  church  from 
which  the  reformers  had  been  enduring  such  terrible 
persecution.  It  was  also  an  expression  of  the  general 
sympathy  for  the  doctrines  which  had  taken  possession 
of  the  national  heart.  It  was  the  depravation  of  that 
instinct  which  had  in  the  beginning  of  the  summer 
drawn  Calvinists  and  Lutherans  forth  in  armed  bodies, 
twenty  thousand  strong,  to  worship  God  in  the  open 
fields.  The  difference  between  the  two  phenomena  was 
that  the  field-preaching  was  a  crime  committed  by  the 
whole  mass  of  the  reformers,— men,  women,  and  children 
confronting  the  penalties  of  death  by  a  general  determi- 
nation,—while  the  image-breaking  was  the  act  of  a  small 
portion  of  the  populace.  A  hundred  persons  belonging 
to  the  lowest  order  of  society  sufficed  for  the  desecration 
of  the  Antwerp  churches.  It  was,  said  Orange,  '^  a  mere 
handful  of  rabble"  who  did  the  deed.^  Sir  Richard 
Clough  saw  ten  or  twelve  persons  entirely  sack  church 
after  church,  while  ten  thousand  spectators  looked  on, 
indifferent  or  horror-struck.  The  bands  of  iconoclasts 
were  of  the  lowest  character,  and  few  in  number.  Per- 
haps the  largest  assemblage  was  that  which  ravaged 

1  "Ein  hauffen  leichtfertiges  gesindlins." — Groen  v.  Prinst., 
Archives,  ii.  262.  "  So  sind  es  nuhr  geringschetzige  und  schlechte 
leuthe  gewesen  die  solches  ausz  eigner  bewegung  und  ungedult 
der  langen  zeitt  geiibtten  unmensehlichen  verfolgung  begangen 
haben." — Letter  of  Orange  to  the  Elector  of  Saxony,  in  Archives 
et  Correspondance,  ii.  484. 

VOL.  II. —16 


242  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

the  province  of  Tournay,  but  this  was  so  weak  as  to  be 
entirely  routed  by  a  small  and  determined  force.  The 
duty  of  repression  devolved  upon  both  Catholics  and 
Protestants.  Neither  party  stirred.  All  seemed  over- 
come with  special  wonder  as  the  tempest  swept  over  the 
land. 

The  ministers  of  the  Reformed  religion  and  the  chiefs 
of  the  liberal  party  aU  denounced  the  image-breaking. 
Francis  Junius  ^  bitterly  regretted  such  excesses.  Am- 
brose Wille,  pure  of  all  participation  in  the  crime,  stood 
up  before  ten  thousand  reformers  at  Tournay— even 
while  the  storm  was  raging  in  the  neighboring  cities, 
and  when  many  voices  around  him  were  hoarsely  com- 
manding similar  depravities — to  rebuke  the  outrages  by 
which  a  sacred  cause  was  disgraced.^  The  Prince  of 
Orange,  in  his  private  letters,  deplored  the  riots  and 
stigmatized  the  perpetrators.  Even  Brederode,  while 
as  suzerain  of  his  city  of  Vianen  he  ordered  the  images 
there  to  be  quietly  taken  from  the  churches,  character- 
ized this  popular  insurrection  as  insensate  and  flagi- 
tious.3  Many  of  the  leading  confederates  not  only  were 
offended  with  the  proceedings,  but,  in  their  eagerness 
to  chastise  the  iconoclasts  and  to  escape  from  a  league 
of  which  they  were  weary,  began  to  take  severe  measures 
against  the  ministers  and  reformers,  of  whom  they  had 
constituted  themselves  in  April  the  especial  protectors. 

The  next  remarkable  characteristic  of  these  tumults 
was  the  almost  entire  abstinence  of  the  rioters  from 
personal  outrage  and  from  pillage.  The  testimony  of  a 
very  bitter  but  honest  Catholic  at  Valenciennes  is  re- 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  ii.  217,  218. 

2  De  la  Barre  MS. 

3  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  261,  265,  483. 


1566]  CHAEACTERISTIC  OF   THE  TUMULTS  243 

markable  upon  this  point.  "  Certain  chroniclers,"  said 
he,  "  have  greatly  mistaken  the  character  of  this  image- 
breaking.  It  has  been  said  that  the  Calvinists  killed  a 
hundred  priests  in  this  city,  cutting  some  of  them  into 
pieces,  and  burning  others  over  a  slow  fire.  I  remeniber 
very  well  everything  ivhich  happened  upon  that  abominaUe 
day,  and  I  can  affirm  that  not  a  single  priest  was  in- 
jured. The  Huguenots  took  good  care  not  to  injure 
in  any  way  the  living  images."^  This  was  the  case 
everywhere.  Catholic  and  Protestant  writers  agree 
that  no  deeds  of  violence  were  committed  against  man 
or  woman.2 

It  would  be  also  very  easy  to  accumulate  a  vast 
weight  of  testimony  as  to  their  forbearance  from  rob- 
bery. They  destroyed  for  destruction's  sake,  not  for 
purposes  of  plunder.  Although  belonging  to  the  lowest 
classes  of  society,  they  left  heaps  of  jewelry,  of  gold 
and  silver  plate,  of  costly  embroidery,  lying  unheeded 
upon  the  ground.  They  felt  instinctively  that  a  great 
passion  would  be  contaminated  by  admixture  with  paltry 
motives.  In  Flanders  a  company  of  rioters  hanged  one 
of  their  own  number  for  stealing  articles  to  the  value  of 
five  shillings.3  In  Valenciennes  the  iconoclasts  were 
offered  large  sums  if  they  would  refrain  from  dese- 
crating the  churches  of  that  city,  but  they  rejected 
the  proposal  with  disdain.  The  honest  Catholic 
burgher  who  recorded  the  fact  observed  that  he  did 
so   because   of   the   many  misrepresentations   on  the 

1  Histoire  des  choses  les  plus  m^morables,  etc.,  MS. 

2  See  letter  of  Clough  already  quoted.  Compare  Strada,  v. 
215,  for  proofs  of  the  abstinence  from  insult  to  the  nuns  and  other 
women  on  this  memorable  occasion. 

5  Burgon,  ubi  sup. 


244  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

subject,  not  because  he  wished  to  flatter  heresy  and 
rebellion,^ 

At  Tournay  the  greatest  scrupulousness  was  observed 
upon  this  point.  The  floor  of  the  cathedral  was  strewn 
with  "pearls  and  precious  stones,  with  chalices  and 
reliquaries  of  silver  and  gold  " ;  but  the  ministers  of  the 
Reformed  religion,  in  company  with  the  magistrates, 
came  to  the  spot,  and  found  no  difficulty,  although 
utterly  without  power  to  prevent  the  storm,  in  taking 
quiet  possession  of  the  wreck.  "We  had  everything 
of  value,"  says  Procureur-General  de  la  Barre,  "care- 
fully inventoried,  weighed,  locked  in  chests,  and  placed 
under  a  strict  guard  in  the  prison  of  the  Halle,  to  which 
one  set  of  keys  were  given  to  the  ministers,  and  another 
to  the  magistrates."  ^  Who  will  dare  to  censure  in  very 
severe  language  this  havoc  among  stocks  and  stones  in 
a  land  where  so  many  living  men  and  women,  of  more 
value  than  many  statues,  had  been  slaughtered  by  the 
Inquisition,  and  where  Alva's  "Blood-Tribunal"  was  so 
soon  to  eclipse  even  that  terrible  institution  in  the  num- 
ber of  its  victims  and  the  amount  of  its  confiscations  ? 

Yet  the  effect  of  the  riots  was  destined  to  be  most 
disastrous  for  a  time  to  the  reforming  party.  It  fur- 
nished plausible  excuses  for  many  lukewarm  friends  of 
their  cause  to  withdraw  from  all  connection  with  it.^ 
Egmont  denounced  the  proceedings  as  highly  flagitious, 
and  busied  himself  with  punishing  the  criminals  in 
Flanders.*    The  regent  was  beside  herself  with  indigna- 

1  "Ce  n'est  pas  que  je  veuille  flatter  la  rebellion  et  I'heresie,  ny 
la  qualifier  beningne  et  debonnaire." — Valenciennes  MS. 

2  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  f.  33. 

*  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  ii.  282. 

*  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1566]  PIEST  EFFECTS  245 

tion  and  terror.  Philip,  when  he  heard  the  news,  fell 
into  a  paroxysm  of  frenzy.  "  It  shall  cost  them  dear !  " 
he  cried,  as  he  tore  his  beard  for  rage— "it  shall  cost 
them  dear !  I  swear  it  by  the  soul  of  my  father !  "  ^ 
The  Reformation  in  the  Netherlands,  by  the  fury  of 
these  fanatics,  was  thus  made  apparently  to  abandon 
the  high  ground  upon  which  it  had  stood  in  the  early 
summer.  The  sublime  spectacle  of  the  multitudinous 
field-preaching  was  sullied  by  the  excesses  of  the  image- 
breaking.  The  religious  war,  before  imminent,  became 
inevitable. 

Nevertheless,  the  first  effect  of  the  tumults  was  a 
temporary  advantage  to  the  reformers.  A  great  con- 
cession was  extorted  from  the  fears  of  the  duchess 
regent,  who  was  certainly  placed  in  a  terrible  position. 
Her  conduct  was  not  heroic,  although  she  might  be  for- 
given for  trepidation.  Her  treachery,  however,  under 
these  trying  circumstances  was  less  venial.  At  three 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  22d  of  August,^  Orange, 
Egmont,  Horn,  Hoogstraaten,  Man  sf eld,  and  others 
were  summoned  to  the  palace.  They  found  her  already 
equipped  for  flight,  surrounded  by  her  waiting-women, 
chamberlains,  and  lackeys,  while  the  mules  and  hackneys 
stood  harnessed  in  the  courtyard,  and  her  body-guard 
were  prepared  to  mount  at  a  moment's  notice.^     She 

1  Letter  of  Morillon  to  Granvelle,  29th  September,  1566,  in 
Gachard,  Anal.  Belg.,  254. 

2  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  188  sqq.  Letter  of 
Horn  in  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  477  sqq.  Vit.  Viglii,  47,  48. 
Vigl.  Epist.  ad  Hopperum,  373. 

*  Letter  of  Horn  to  Montigny  in  Foppens,  and  in  Bijvoegsel 
Authent.  Stukken  tot  de  Hist.  v.  P.  Bor,  i.  91,  92.  Vit.  Viglii, 
ubi  supra.  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  ubi  sup.  Cor- 
respondance de  Philippe  H.,  i.  452-454. 


246  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

announced  her  intention  of  retreating  at  once  to  Mons, 
in  which  city,  owing  to  Aerschot's  care,  she  hoped  to 
find  refuge  against  the  fury  of  the  rebellion  then  sweep- 
ing the  country.  Her  alarm  was  almost  beyond  control. 
She  was  certain  that  the  storm  was  ready  to  burst  upon 
Brussels,  and  that  every  Catholic  was  about  to  be  mas- 
sacred before  her  eyes.  Aremberg,  Berlaymont,  and 
Noircarmes  were  with  the  duchess  when  the  other  sei- 
gniors arrived. 

A  part  of  the  Duke  of  Aerschot's  company  had  been 
ordered  out  to  escort  the  projected  flight  to  Mons. 
Orange,  Horn,  Egmont,  and  Hoogstraaten  implored  her 
to  desist  from  her  fatal  resolution.  They  represented 
that  such  a  retreat  before  a  mob  would  be  the  very 
means  of  ruining  the  country.  They  denounced  all 
persons  who  had  counseled  the  scheme  as  enemies  of 
his  Majesty  and  herself.  They  protested  their  readiness 
to  die  at  her  feet  in  her  defense,  but  besought  her  not 
to  abandon  the  post  of  duty  in  the  hour  of  peril.  While 
they  were  thus  anxiously  debating,  Viglius  entered  the 
chamber.  With  tears  streaming  down  her  cheeks,  Mar- 
garet turned  to  the  aged  president,  uttering  fierce  re- 
proaches and  desponding  lamentations.  Viglius  brought 
the  news  that  the  citizens  had  taken  possession  of  the 
gates  and  were  resolved  not  to  permit  her  departure 
from  the  city.  He  reminded  her,  according  to  the  in- 
dispensable practice  of  all  wise  counselors,  that  he  had 
been  constantly  predicting  this  result.  He,  however, 
failed  in  administering  much  consolation,  or  in  suggest- 
ing any  remedy.  He  was,  in  truth,  in  as  great  a  panic 
as  herself,  and  it  was,  according  to  the  statement  of  the 
duchess,  mainly  in  order  to  save  the  president  from 
threatened  danger  that  she  eventually  resolved  to  make 


1566]  PANIC  AND  CONCESSION  247 

concessions.  "Viglius,"  wrote  Margaret  to  Philip,  ^'is 
so  miich  afraid  of  being  cut  to  pieces  that  his  timidity 
has  become  incredible."  ^  Upon  the  warm  assurance  of 
Count  Horn  that  he  would  enable  her  to  escape  from 
the  city,  should  it  become  necessary,  or  would  perish  in 
the  attempt,  a  promise  in  which  he  was  seconded  by  the 
rest  of  the  seigniors,  she  consented  to  remain  for  the 
day  in  her  palace.^  Mansfeld  was  appointed  captain- 
general  of  the  city;  Egmont,  Horn,  Orange,  and  the 
others  agreed  to  serve  under  his  orders,  and  all  went 
down  together  to  the  town  house.  The  magistrates 
were  summoned,  a  general  meeting  of  the  citizens  was 
convened,  and  the  announcement  made  of  Mansfeld's 
appointment,  together  with  an  earnest  appeal  to  all 
honest  men  to  support  the  government.  The  appeal 
was  answered  by  a  shout  of  unanimous  approbation,  an 
enthusiastic  promise  to  live  or  die  with  the  regent,  and 
the  expression  of  a  resolution  to  permit  neither  Reformed 
preaching  nor  image-breaking  within  the  city.^ 

Nevertheless,  at  seven  o'clock  in  the  evening  the 
duchess  again  sent  for  the  seigniors.  She  informed 
them  that  she  had  received  fresh  and  certain  informa- 
tion that  the  churches  were  to  be  sacked  that  very 
night,  that  Viglius,  Berlaymont,  and  Aremberg  were 
to  be  killed,  and  that  herself  and  Egmont  were  to  be 
taken  prisoners.  She  repeated  many  times  that  she 
had  been  ill  advised,  expressed  bitter  regret  at  having 
deferred  her  flight  from  the  city,  and  called  upon  those 
who  had  obstructed  her  plan  now  to  fulfil  their  prom- 
ises.    Turning  fiercely  upon  Count  Horn,  she  uttered  a 

1  Correspondcance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  460,  461. 

2  Letter  of  Horn  to  Montigny,  ubi  sup. 

3  Ibid. 


248  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

volley  of  reproaches  upon  his  share  in  the  transaction. 
^'  You  are  the  cause,"  said  she,  '^  that  I  am  now  in  this 
position.  Why  do  you  not  redeem  your  pledge  and 
enable  me  to  leave  the  place  at  once  ? "  ^  Horn  replied 
that  he  was  ready  to  do  so  if  she  were  resolved  to  stay 
no  longer.  He  would  at  the  instant  cut  his  way  through 
the  guard  at  the  Caudenberg  gate,  and  bring  her  out  in 
safety,  or  die  in  the  effort.  At  the  same  time  he  assured 
her  that  he  gave  no  faith  to  the  idle  reports  flying  about 
the  city,  reminded  her  that  nobles,  magistrates,  and 
citizens  were  united  in  her  defense,  and  in  brief  used 
the  same  arguments  which  had  before  been  used  to 
pacify  her  alarm.  The  nobles  were  again  successful  in 
enforcing  their  counsels,  the  duchess  was  spared  the 
ignominy  and  the  disaster  of  a  retreat  before  an  insur- 
rection which  was  only  directed  against  statues,  and 
the  ecclesiastical  treasures  of  Brussels  were  saved  from 
sacrilege.2 

On  the  23d  August  came  the  crowning  act  of  what 
the  reformers  considered  their  most  complete  triumph, 
and  the  regent  her  deepest  degradation.  It  was  found 
necessary,  under  the  alarming  aspect  of  affairs,  that 
liberty  of  worship,  in  places  where  it  had  been  already 
established,  should  be  accorded  to  the  new  religion. 
Articles  of  agreement  to  this  effect  were  accordingly 
drawn  up  and  exchanged  between  the  government  and 
Louis  of  Nassau,  attended  by  fifteen  others  of  the  con- 
federacy.    A  corresponding  pledge  was  signed  by  them 

1  Letter  of  Horn  to  Montigny,  ubi  sup.  Hoofd,  iii.  107.  Bor, 
ii.  85. 

2  Ibid.  Ibid.  Ibid.  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriehe,  ubi 
sup.  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  ubi  sup.  Groen  v. 
Prinst.,  Archives,  ii.  237,  238.     Hopper,  Eec.  et  Mem.,  99. 


15G6]  ARTICLES  OF   AGREEMENT  249 

that  so  long  as  the  regent  was  true  to  her  engagement 
they  would  consider  their  previously  existing  league 
annulled,  and  would  assist  cordially  in  every  endeavor 
to  maintain  tranquillity  and  support  the  authority  of 
his  Majesty.  The  important  Accord  was  then  duly 
signed  by  the  duchess.  It  declared  that  the  Inquisition 
was  abolished,  that  his  Majesty  would  soon  issue  a  new 
general  edict  expressly  and  unequivocally  protecting 
the  nobles  against  all  CAil  consequences  from  past  trans- 
actions, that  they  were  to  be  employed  in  the  royal 
service,  and  that  public  preaching  according  to  the 
forms  of  the  new  religion  was  to  be  practised  in  places 
where  it  had  already  taken  place.  Letters  general  were 
immediately  despatched  to  the  senates  of  all  the  cities, 
proclaiming  these  articles  of  agreement  and  ordering 
their  execution.^  Thus  for  a  fleeting  moment  there 
was  a  thrill  of  joy  throughout  the  Netherlands.  The 
Inquisition  was  thought  forever  abolished,  the  era  of 
religious  reformation  arrived. 

1  Bor,  ii.  97,  98.    Hoofd,  iii.  109.    Strada,  v.  222.    Hopper,  Rec. 
et  Mem.,  99-202. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

Secret  policy  of  the  government— Berghen  and  Montigny  in  Spain 
—Debates  at  Segovia— Correspondence  of  tlie  dueliess  with  Philip 
— Procrastination  and  dissimulation  of  the  king — Secret  com- 
munication to  the  pope— Effect  in  the  provinces  of  the  king's 
letters  to  the  government — Secret  instructions  to  the  duchess — 
Desponding  statements  of  Margaret— Her  misrepresentations  con- 
cerning Orange,  Egmont,  and  others— Wrath  and  duplicity  of 
Philip— Egmont's  exertions  in  Flanders— Orange  returns  to  Ant- 
werp—His tolerant  spirit— Agreement  of  2d  September— Horn  at 
Tournay— Excavations  in  the  cathedral— Almost  universal  atten- 
dance at  the  preaching — Building  of  temples  commenced — Difficult 
position  of  Horn— Preaching  in  the  Clothiers'  Hall— Horn  recalled 
— Noircarmes  at  Tournay — Friendly  correspondence  of  Mai'garet 
with  Orange,  Egmont,  Horn,  and  Hoogstraaten— Her  secret  defa- 
mation of  these  persons. 

Egmont  in  Flanders,  Orange  at  Antwerp,  Horn  at 
Tournay,  Hoogstraaten  at  Mechlin,  were  exerting  them- 
selves to  suppress  insurrection  and  to  avert  ruin.i 
What,  meanwhile,  was  the  policy  of  the  government? 
The  secret  course  pursued  both  at  Brussels  and  at 
Madrid  may  be  condensed  into  the  usual  formula- 
dissimulation,  procrastination,  and  again  dissimulation. 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  La  Defense  de  Messire  Antoine  de  Lalaing, 
Compte  de  Hocstrate,  etc.,  Mons  (republished  by  M.  Gachard). 
Letter  of  Horn  to  Montigny,  Foppens,  ii.  480.  Bor,  ii.  84-86. 
Wesenbeck. 

250 


1566]  BERGHEN  AND  MONTIGNY  IN  SPAIN  251 

It  is  at  this  point  necessary  to  take  a  rapid  survey  of 
the  open  and  the  secret  proceedings  of  the  king  and  his 
representatives  from  the  moment  at  which  Berghen  and 
Montigny  arrived  in  Madrid.  Those  ill-fated  gentlemen 
had  been  received  with  apparent  cordiality,  and  admitted 
to  frequent  but  unmeaning  interviews  with  his  Majesty. 
The  current  upon  which  they  were  embarked  was  deep 
and  treacherous,  but  it  was  smooth  and  very  slow. 
They  assured  the  king  that  his  letters  ordering  the 
rigorous  execution  of  the  Inquisition  and  edicts  had 
engendered  all  the  evils  under  which  the  provinces  were 
laboring.  They  told  him.  that  Spaniards  and  tools  of 
Spaniards  had  attempted  to  govern  the  country,  to  the 
exclusion  of  native  citizens  and  nobles,  but  that  it  would 
soon  be  found  that  Netherlanders  were  not  to  be  trod- 
den upon  like  the  abject  inhabitants  of  Milan,  Naples, 
and  Sicily.^  Such  words  as  these  struck  with  an  unac- 
customed sound  upon  the  royal  ear,  but  the  envoys,  who 
were  both  Catholic  and  loyal,  had  no  idea,  in  thus  ex- 
pressing their  opinions,  according  to  their  sense  of  duty 
and  in  obedience  to  the  king's  desire,  upon  the  causes 
of  the  discontent,  that  they  were  committing  an  act  of 
high  treason. 

When  the  news  of  the  public  preaching  reached  Spain 
there  were  almost  daily  consultations  at  the  grove  of 
Segovia.  The  eminent  personages  who  composed  the 
royal  council  were  the  Duke  of  Alva,  the  Count  de 
Feria,  Don  Antonio  de  Toledo,  Don  Juan  Manrique  de 
Lara,  Ruy  Gomez,  Quixada,  Councilor  Tisnacq,  recently 
appointed  president  of  the  state  council,  and  Councilor 
Hopper.2    Six  Spaniards  and  two  Netherlanders,  one  of 

1  Hopper,  Rec.  et  Mem., 78-80. 

2  Ibid.,  88. 


252  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

whom,  too,  a  man  of  dull  intellect  and  thoroughly  sub- 
servient character,  to  deal  with  the  local  affairs  of  the 
Netherlands  in  a  time  of  intense  excitement !  The  in- 
structions of  the  envoys  had  been  to  represent  the 
necessity  of  according  three  great  points— abolition  of 
the  Inquisition,  moderation  of  the  edicts  according  to 
the  draft  prepared  in  Brussels,  and  an  ample  pardon 
for  past  transactions.  There  was  much  debate  upon  all 
these  propositions.^  Philip  said  little,  but  he  listened 
attentively  to  the  long  discourses  in  council,  and  he 
took  an  incredible  quantity  of  notes.  It  was  the  general 
opinion  that  this  last  demand  on  the  part  of  the  Nether- 
landers  was  the  fourth  link  in  the  chain  of  treason. 
The  first  had  been  the  cabal  by  which  Granvelle  had 
been  expelled;  the  second,  the  mission  of  Egmont,  the 
main  object  of  which  had  been  to  procure  a  modification 
of  the  state  council,  in  order  to  bring  that  body  under 
the  control  of  a  few  haughty  and  rebellious  nobles ;  the 
third  had  been  the  presentation  of  the  insolent  and  sedi- 
tious Request;  and  now,  to  crown  the  whole,  came  a 
proposition  embodying  the  three  points— abolition  of 
the  Inquisition,  revocation  of  the  edicts,  and  a  pardon 
to  criminals  for  whom  death  was  the  only  sufficient 
punishment.2 

With  regard  to  these  three  points,  it  was,  after  much 
wrangling,  decided  to  grant  them  under  certain  restric- 
tions. To  abolish  the  Inquisition  would  be  to  remove 
the  only  instrument  by  which  the  Church  had  been  ac- 
customed to  regulate  the  consciences  and  the  doctrines 
of  its  subjects.  It  would  be  equivalent  to  a  concession 
of  religious  freedom,  at  least  to  individuals  within  their 

1  Hopper,  Ree.  et  M6m.,  81  sqq.,  88  sqq. 

2  Ibid.,  81-83. 


1566]  COUNCILS  AND  COUNSEL-KEEPING  253 

own  domiciles,  than  which  no  concession  could  be  more 
pernicious.^  Nevertheless,  it  might  be  advisable  to  per- 
mit the  temporary  cessation  of  the  papal  Inquisition, 
now  that  the  episcopal  Inquisition  had  been  so  much 
enlarged  and  strengthened  in  the  Netherlands,  on  the 
condition  that  this  branch  of  the  institution  should  be 
maintained  in  energetic  condition.^  With  regard  to  the 
'^  Moderation,"  it  was  thought  better  to  defer  that  matter 
till  the  proposed  visit  of  his  Majesty  to  the  provinces. 
If,  however,  the  regent  should  think  it  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  make  a  change,  she  must  cause  a  new  draft  to 
be  made,  as  that  which  had  been  sent  was  not  found 
admissible.^  Touching  the  pardon  general,  it  would  be 
necessary  to  make  many  conditions  and  restrictions  be- 
fore it  could  be  granted.  Provided  these  were  sufficiently 
minute  to  exclude  all  persons  whom  it  might  be  found 
desirable  to  chastise,  the  amnesty  was  possible.  Other- 
wise it  was  quite  out  of  the  question. 

Meantime  Margaret  of  Parma  had  been  urging  her 
brother  to  come  to  a  decision,  painting  the  distracted 
condition  of  the  country  in  the  liveliest  colors,  and  insist- 
ing, although  perfectly  aware  of  Philip's  private  senti- 
ments, upon  a  favorable  decision  as  to  the  three  points 
demanded  by  the  envoys.  Especially  she  urged  her 
incapacity  to  resist  any  rebellion,  and  demanded  succor 
of  men  and  money  in  case  the  "  Moderation  "  were  not 
accepted  by  his  Majesty. 

It  was  the  last  day  of  July  before  the  king  wrote  at 
all,  to  communicate  his  decisions  upon  the  crisis  which 
had  occurred  in  the  first  week  of  April,  The  disorder 
for  which  he  had  finally  prepared  a  prescription  had, 
before  his  letter  arrived,  already  passed  through  its 

1  Hopper,  86.  2  Ibid.  3  ibid.,  87. 


254  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

subsequent  stages  of  the  field-preacMng  and  the  image- 
breaking.  Of  course  these  fresh  symptoms  would  re- 
quire much  consultation,  pondering,  and  note-taking 
before  they  could  be  dealt  with.  In  the  meantime  they 
would  be  considered  as  not  yet  having  happened.  This 
was  the  masterly  procrastination  of  the  sovereign,  when 
his  provinces  were  in  a  blaze. 

His  masterly  dissimulation  was  employed  in  the  direc- 
tion suggested  by  his  councilors.  Philip  never  origi- 
nated a  thought  nor  laid  down  a  plan,  but  he  was 
ever  true  to  the  falsehood  of  his  nature,  and  was  inde- 
fatigable in  following  out  the  suggestions  of  others. 
No  greater  mistake  can  be  made  than  to  ascribe  talent 
to  this  plodding  and  pedantic  monarch.  The  man's 
intellect  was  contemptible,  but  malignity  and  dupli- 
city almost  superhuman  have  effectually  lifted  his 
character  out  of  the  regions  of  the  commonplace.  He 
wrote  accordingly  to  say  that  the  pardon,  under  cer- 
tain conditions,  might  be  granted,  and  that  the  papal 
Inquisition  might  cease— the  bishops  now  being  present 
in  such  numbers,  "  to  take  care  of  their  flocks,"  and  the 
episcopal  Inquisition  being  therefore  established  upon 
so  secure  a  basis.^  He  added  that  if  a  moderation  of 
the  edicts  were  still  desired,  a  new  project  might  be 
sent  to  Madrid,  as  the  one  brought  by  Berghen  and 
Montigny  was  not  satisfactory.^  In  arranging  this 
wonderful  scheme  for  composing  the  tumults  of  the 
country,  which  had  grown  out  of  a  determined  rebellion 
to  the  Inquisition  in  any  form,  he  followed  not  only  the 
advice,  but  adopted  the  exact  language  of  his  councilors. 

Certainly  here   was  not   much   encouragement   for 

1  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriehe,  100-103  sqq. 

2  Ibid. 


1566]  PIOUS  FKAUD  255 

patriotic  hearts  in  the  Netherlands.  A  pardon  so  re- 
stricted that  none  were  likely  to  be  forgiven  save  those 
who  had  done  no  wrong ;  an  episcopal  Inquisition  stim- 
ulated to  renewed  exertions,  on  the  ground  that  the 
papal  functionaries  were  to  be  discharged ;  and  a  promise 
that,  although  the  proposed  moderation  of  the  edicts 
seemed  too  mild  for  the  monarch's  acceptance,  yet  at 
some  future  period  another  project  would  be  matured 
for  settling  the  matter  to  universal  satisfaction — such 
were  the  propositions  of  the  crown.  Nevertheless, 
Philip  thought  he  had  gone  too  far  even  in  administer- 
ing this  meager  amount  of  mercy,  and  that  he  had  been 
too  frank  in  employing  so  slender  a  deception  as  in  the 
scheme  thus  sketched.  He  therefore  summoned  a  no- 
tary, before  whom,  in  presence  of  the  Duke  of  Alva,  the 
Licentiate  Menchaca,  and  Dr.  Velasco,  he  declared  that, 
although  he  had  just  authorized  Margaret  of  Parma,  by 
force  of  circumstances,  to  grant  pardon  to  all  those  who 
had  been  compromised  in  the  late  disturbances  of  the 
Netherlands,  yet,  as  he  had  not  done  this  spontaneously 
nor  freely,  he  did  not  consider  himself  bound  by  the 
authorization,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  he  reserved  his 
right  to  punish  all  the  guilty,  and  particularly  those 
who  had  been  the  authors  and  encouragers  of  the  sedi- 
tion.i 

So  much  for  the  pardon  promised  in  his  official  cor- 
respondence. 

With  regard  to  the  concessions  which  he  supposed 
himself  to  have  made  in  the  matter  of  the  Inquisition 
and  the  edicts,  he  saved  his  conscience  by  another  pro- 
cess. Revoking  with  his  right  hand  all  which  his  left 
had  been  doing,  he  had  no  sooner  despatched  his  letters 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  443. 


256  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

to  the  duchess  regent  than  he  sent  off  another  to  his 
envoy  at  Rome.^  In  this  despatch  he  instructed  Re- 
quesens  to  inform  the  pope  as  to  the  recent  royal  de- 
cisions upon  the  three  points,  and  to  state  that  there 
had  not  been  time  to  consult  his  Holiness  beforehand. 
Nevertheless,  continued  Philip,  "the  prudent,"  it  was 
perhaps  better  thus,  since  the  aholition  could  have  no  force 
unless  the  pope,  by  whom  the  institution  had  been 
established,  consented  to  its  suspension.  This  matter, 
however,  was  to  he  kept  a  profound  secret?  So  much  for 
the  Inquisition  matter.  The  papal  institution,  notwith- 
standing the  official  letters,  was  to  exist,  unless  the  pope 
chose  to  destroy  it ;  and  his  Holiness,  as  we  have  seen, 
had  sent  the  Archbishop  of  Sorrento,  a  few  weeks  before, 
to  Brussels,  for  the  purpose  of  concerting  secret  mea- 
sures for  strengthening  the  Holy  Office  in  the  prov- 
inces. 

With  regard  to  the  proposed  moderation  of  the  edicts, 
Philip  informed  Pius  V.,  through  Requesens,  that  the 
project  sent  by  the  duchess  not  having  been  approved, 
orders  had  been  transmitted  for  a  new  draft,  in  which 
all  the  articles  providing  for  the  severe  punishment  of 
heretics  were  to  he  retained,  while  alterations,  to  be  agreed 
upon  by  the  state  and  privy  councils  and  the  Knights  of 
the  Fleece,  were  to  be  adopted— certainly  in  no  sense  of 
clemency.  On  the  contrary,  the  king  assured  his  Holiness 
that  if  the  severity  of  chastisement  should  he  mitigated  the 
least  in  the  world  by  the  new  articles,  they  would  in  no 
case  receive  the  royal  approbation.  Philip  further  im- 
plored the  pope  "  not  to  be  scandalized  "  with  regard  to 
the  proposed  pardon,  as  it  would  be  by  no  means  extended 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  445,  446. 

2  Ibid. 


1566]  SECRETS  257 

to  offenders  against  religion.  All  this  was  to  be  kept 
entirely  secret.  The  king  added  that,  rather  than  per- 
mit the  least  prejudice  to  the  ancient  religion,  he  would 
sacrifice  all  his  states,  and  lose  a  hundred  lives  if  he 
had  so  many ;  for  he  would  'never  consent  to  be  the 
sovereign  of  heretics.  He  said  he  would  arrange  the 
troubles  of  the  Netherlands  without  violence,  if  pos- 
sible, because  forcible  measures  would  cause  the  entire 
destruction  of  the  country.  Nevertheless,  they  should 
be  employed  if  his  purpose  could  be  accomplished  in 
no  other  way.  In  that  case  the  king  would  himself  be 
the  executor  of  his  own  design,  without  allowing  the 
peril  which  he  should  incur,  nor  the  ruin  of  the  prov- 
inces, nor  that  of  his  other  realms,  to  prevent  him  from 
doing  all  which  a  Christian  prince  was  bound  to  do  to 
maintain  the  Catholic  religion  and  the  authority  of  the 
Holy  See,  as  well  as  to  testify  his  personal  regard  for  the 
reigning  pontiff,  whom  he  so  much  loved  and  esteemed.^ 
Here  was  plain-speaking.  Here  were  all  the  coming 
horrors  distinctly  foreshadowed.  Here  was  the  truth 
told  to  the  only  being  with  whom  Philip  ever  was  sin- 
cere. Yet  even  on  this  occasion  he  permitted  himself 
a  falsehood,  by  which  his  Holiness  was  not  deceived. 
Philip  had  no  intention  of  going  to  the  Netherlands  in 
person,  and  the  pope  knew  that  he  had  none.  "  I  feel 
it  in  my  bones,"  said  Granvelle,  mournfully,  "that  no- 
body in  Rome  believes  in  his  Majesty's  journey  to  the 
provinces."  2  From  that  time  forward,  however,  the 
king  began  to  promise  this  visit,  which  was  held  out  as 
a  panacea  for  every  ill,  and  made  to  serve  as  an  excuse 
for  constant  delay. 

1  Correspoiidanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  445,  446. 

2  "Siento  en  los  huessos."— Ibid.,  318. 
VOL.  II.— 17 


258  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

It  may  well  be  supposed  that  if  Philip's  secret  policy 
had  been  thoroughly  understood  in  the  Netherlands 
the  outbreak  would  have  come  sooner.  On  the  receipt, 
however,  of  the  public  despatches  from  Madrid,  the 
administration  in  Brussels  made  great  efforts  to  repre- 
sent their  tenor  as  highly  satisfactory.  The  papal  In- 
quisition was  to  be  abolished,  a  pardon  was  to  be  granted, 
a  new  moderation  was  to  be  arranged  at  some  indefinite 
period ;  what  more  would  men  have  ?  Yet  without  see- 
ing the  face  of  the  cards,  the  people  suspected  the  real 
truth,  and  Orange  was  convinced  of  it.  Vighus  wrote 
that  if  the  king  did  not  make  his  intended  visit  soon,  he 
would  come  too  late,  and  that  every  week  more  harm  was 
done  by  procrastination  than  could  be  repaired  by  months 
of  labor  and  perhaps  by  torrents  of  blood.^  What  the  pre- 
cise process  was  through  which  Philip  was  to  cure  all  dis- 
orders by  his  simple  presence,  the  president  did  not  explain. 

As  for  the  measures  propounded  by  the  king  after  so 
long  a  delay,  they  were  of  course  worse  than  useless, 
for  events  had  been  marching  while  he  had  been  mus- 
ing. The  course  suggested  was,  according  to  Viglius, 
but  "  a  plaster  for  a  wound,  but  a  drag-chain  for  the 
wheel."  2  He  urged  that  the  convocation  of  the  States- 
General  was  the  only  remedy  for  the  perils  in  which  the 
country  was  involved,  unless  the  king  should  come  in 
person.  He,  however,  expressed  the  hope  that  by  general 
consultation  some  means  would  be  devised  by  which,  if 
not  a  good,  at  least  a  less  desperate  aspect  would  be 
given  to  public  affairs,  "so  that  the  commonwealth,  if 
fall  it  must,  might  at  least  fall  upon  its  feet  like  a  cat, 
and  break  its  legs  rather  than  its  neck."  ^ 

1  Ep.  ad  Joach.  Hopperum,  366,  367. 

2  Ibid.,  376.  3  Ibid. 


1566]  PHILIP'S  POLICY  259 

Notwithstanding  this  highly  figurative  view  of  the 
subject,  and  notwithstanding  the  urgent  representations 
of  Duchess  Margaret  to  her  brother  that  nobles  and 
people  were  all  clamoring  about  the  necessity  of  conven- 
ing the  States-General/  Philip- was  true  to  his  instincts 
on  this  as  on  the  other  questions.  He  knew  very  well 
that  the  States-General  of  the  Netherlands  and  Spanish 
despotism  were  incompatible  ideas,  and  he  recoiled  from 
the  idea  of  the  assembly  with  infinite  aversion.  At  the 
same  time  a  little  wholesome  deception  could  do  no 
harm.  He  wrote  to  the  duchess,  therefore,  that  he  was 
determined  never  to  alloiv  the  States-General  to  be  con- 
vened. He  forbade  her  to  consent  to  the  step  under 
any  circumstances,  but  ordered  her  to  heep  his  prohibi- 
tion a  profound  secret.  He  wished,  he  said,  the  people  to 
think  that  it  was  only  for  the  moment  that  the  convoca- 
tion was  forbidden,  and  that  the  duchess  was  expecting 
to  receive  the  necessary  permission  at  another  time.  It 
was  his  desire,  he  distinctly  stated,  that  the  people 
should  not  despair  of  obtaining  the  assembly,  but  he 
ivas  resolved  never  to  consent  to  the  step,  for  he  knew 
very  well  what  was  meant  by  a  meeting  of  the  States- 
General.2  Certainly  after  so  ingenuous  but  secret  a 
declaration  from  the  disciple  of  Machiavelli,  Margaret 
might  well  consider  the  arguments  to  be  used  afterward 
by  herself  and  others,  in  favor  of  the  ardently  desired 
measure,  as  quite  superfluous. 

Such,  then,  was  the  policy  secretly  resolved  upon  by 
Philip,  even  before  he  heard  of  the  startling  events 
which  were  afterward  to  break  upon  him.      He  would 

1  Unpublished  letter  of  Margaret  of  Parma  (13th  September, 
1566),  Brussels  Archives,  before  cited. 

2  Correspoudance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  439. 


260  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

maintain  the  Inquisition  and  the  edicts ;  he  would  ex- 
terminate the  heretics,  even  if  he  lost  all  his  realms  and 
his  own  life  in  the  cause ;  he  would  never  hear  of  the 
national  representatives  coming  tog-ether.  What  then 
were  likely  to  be  his  emotions  when  he  should  be  told 
of  twenty  thousand  armed  heretics  assembling  at  one 
spot,  and  fifteen  thousand  at  another,  in  almost  every 
town  in  every  province,  to  practise  their  blasphemous 
rites ;  when  he  should  be  told  of  the  whirlwind  which 
had  swept  all  the  ecclesiastical  accumulations  of  ages 
out  of  existence ;  when  he  should  read  Margaret's  de- 
spairing letters,  in  which  she  acknowledged  that  she  had 
at  last  committed  an  act  unworthy  of  God,  of  her  king, 
and  of  herself,!  in  permitting  liberty  of  worship  to  the 
renegades  from  the  ancient  Church ! 

The  account  given  by  the  duchess  was  in  truth  very 
dismal.  She  said  that  grief  consumed  her  soul  and 
crimson  suffused  her  cheeks  while  she  related  the  recent 
transactions.  She  took  God  to  witness  that  she  had 
resisted  long,  that  she  had  passed  many  sleepless  nights, 
that  she  had  been  wasted  with  fever  and  grief.^  After 
this  penitential  preface  she  confessed  that,  being  a 
prisoner  and  almost  besieged  in  her  palace,  sick  in  body 
and  soul,  she  had  promised  pardon  and  security  to  the 
confederates,  with  liberty  of  holding  assemblies  to  her- 
etics in  places  where  the  practice  had  already  obtained. 
These  concessions  had  been  made  valid  until  the  king, 
by  and  with  the  consent  of  the  States-General,  should 
definitely  arrange  the  matter.  She  stated,  however, 
that  she  had  given  her  consent  to  these  two  demands, 

1  Strada,  v.  222,  223. 

2  Ibid.  Compare  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche.  187- 
200.    Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  452-454. 


1566]  CONFESSIONS  261 

not  in  the  royal  name,  but  in  her  own.  The  king  was 
not  bound  by  her  promise,  and  she  expressed  the  Jiope 
that  he  tvoiild  have  no  regard  to  any  such  obligation. 
She  further  implored  her  brother  to  come  forth  as  soon 
as  possible  to  avenge  the  injuries  inflicted  upon  the 
ancient  Church,  adding  that  if  deprived  of  that  consola- 
tion she  should  incontinently  depart  this  life.  That 
hope  alone  would  prevent  her  death.  ^ 

This  was  certainly  strong  language.  She  was  also 
very  explicit  in  her  representations  of  the  influence 
which  had  been  used  by  certain  personages  to  prevent 
the  exercise  of  any  authority  upon  her  own  part. 
"Wherefore,"  said  Margaret,  ''I  eat  my  heart,  and 
shall  never  have  peace  till  the  arrival  of  your  Majesty."  2 

There  was  no  doubt  who  those  personages  were  who, 
as  it  was  pretended,  had  thus  held  the  duchess  in  bon- 
dage and  compelled  her  to  grant  these  infamous  conces- 
sions. In  her  secret  Italian  letters  she  furnished  the 
king  with  a  tissue  of  most  extravagant  and  improbable 
falsehoods,  supplied  to  her  mainly  by  Noircarmes  and 
Mansfeld,  as  to  the  course  pursued  at  this  momentous 
crisis  by  Orange,  Egmont,  Horn,  and  Hoogstraaten. 
They  had  all,  she  said,  declared  against  God  and  against 
religion.^  Horn,  at  least,  was  for  killing  all  the  priests 
and  monks  in  the  country,  if  full  satisfaction  were  not 
given  to  the  demands  of  the  heretics.  Egmont  had 
declared  openly  for  the  beggars,  and  was  levying  troops 

1  Strada,  ubi  sup.  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriehe,  ubi 
sup.     Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  ubi  sup. 

2  "  Pourquoy  je  me  mange  le  cceur,  et  n'en  serois  quitte  sans  la 
presence  de  Vostre  Majeste."— Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Au- 
triehe, 202. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  452-454. 


262  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

in  Germany.  Orange  had  the  firm  intention  of  making 
himself  master  of  the  whole  country,  and  of  dividing  it 
among  the  other  seigniors  and  himself.^  The  prince 
had  said  that  if  she  took  refuge  in  Mons,  as  she  had 
proposed,  they  would  instantly  convoke  the  States- 
General  and  take  all  necessary  measures.  Egmont  had 
held  the  same  language,  saying  that  he  would  march  at 
the  head  of  forty  thousand  men  to  besiege  her  in  that 
city .2  All  these  seigniors,  however,  had  avowed  their 
determination  to  prevent  her  flight,  to  assemble  the 
estates,  and  to  drag  her  by  force  before  the  assembly, 
in  order  to  compel  her  consent  to  every  measure  which 
might  be  deemed  expedient.^  Under  all  these  circum- 
stances she  had  been  obliged  to  defer  her  retreat,  and 
to  make  the  concessions  which  had  overwhelmed  her 
with  disgrace. 

With  such  infamous  calumnies,  utterly  disproved  by 
every  fact  in  the  case,  and  unsupported  by  a  tittle  of 
evidence  save  the  hearsay  reports  of  a  man  like  Noir- 
carmes,  did  this  "  woman,  nourished  at  Rome,  in  whom 
no  one  could  put  confidence,"*  dig  the  graves  of  men 
who  were  doing  their  best  to  serve  her. 

Philip's  rage  at  first  hearing  of  the  image-breaking 
has  been  indicated.  He  was  ill  of  an  intermittent  fever 
at  the  wood  of  Segovia  when  the  news  arrived,^  and  it 
may  well  be  supposed  that  his  wrath  at  these  proceed- 
ings was  not  likely  to  assuage  his  malady.  Neverthe- 
less, after  the  first  burst  of  indignation,  he  found  relief 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  452-454. 

2  Ibid.  3  Ibid. 

*  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  401.  Expression  of  Eg- 
mont's. 

5  Hopper,  Rec.  et  M6m.,  104. 


1566]  CALUMNY  AND  WRATH  263 

in  his  usual  deception.  While  slowly  maturing  the 
most  tremendous  vengeance  which  anointed  monarch 
ever  deliberately  wreaked  upon  his  people,  he  wrote  to 
say  that  it  was  "his  intention  to  treat  his  vassals  and 
subjects  in  the  provinces  like  a  good  and  clement  prince, 
not  to  ruin  them  nor  to  put  them  into  servitude,  but  to 
exercise  all  humanity,  sweetness,  and  grace,  avoiding 
all  harshness."  ^  Such  were  the  avowed  intentions  of 
the  sovereign  toward  his  people  at  the  moment  when 
the  terrible  Alva,  who  was  to  be  the  exponent  of  all  this 
"humanity,  sweetness,  and  grace,"  was  already  begin- 
ning the  preparations  for  his  famous  invasion  of  the 
Netherlands. 

The  essence  of  the  compact  agreed  to  upon  the  23d 
August  between  the  confederates  and  the  regent  was 
that  the  preaching  of  the  Reformed  religion  should  be 
tolerated  in  places  where  it  had  previously  to  that  date 
been  established.  Upon  this  basis  Egmont,  Horn, 
Orange,  Hoogstraaten,  and  others  were  directed  once 
more  to  attempt  the  pacification  of  the  different  prov- 
inces. 

Egmont  departed  for  his  government  of  Flanders, 
and  from  that  moment  vanished  all  his  pretensions, 
which  at  best  had  been  slender  enough,  to  the  character 
of  a  national  chieftain.  During  the  whole  of  the  year 
his  course  had  been  changeful.  He  had  felt  the  influ- 
ence of  Orange;  he  had  generous  instincts;  he  had 
much  vanity ;  he  had  the  pride  of  high  rank,  which  did 
not  easily  brook  the  domination  of  strangers  in  a  land 
which  he  considered  himself  and  his  compeers  entitled 
by  their  bii*th  to  rule.     At  this  juncture,  however,  par- 

1  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  206,  207,  Letter  of 
November  27,  1566. 


264  THE  RISE  OP   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [15G6 

ticularly  when  in  the  company  of  Noirearmes,  Berlay- 
mont,  and  Viglius,  he  expressed,  notwithstanding  their 
calumnious  misstatements,  the  deepest  detestation  of 
the  heretics.!  He  was  a  fervent  Catholic,  and  he  re- 
garded the  image-breaking  as  an  unpardonable  crime. 
"  We  must  take  up  arms,"  said  he,  ''  sooner  or  later,  to 
bring  these  reformers  to  reason,  or  they  will  end  by 
laying  down  the  law  for  us."  2  On  the  other  hand,  his 
anger  would  be  often  appeased  by  the  grave  but  gracious 
remonstrances  of  Orange.  During  a  part  of  the  sum- 
mer the  reformers  had  been  so  strong  in  Flanders  that 
upon  a  single  day  sixty  thousand  armed  men  had  been 
assembled  at  the  different  field-preachings  within  that 
province.  "All  they  needed  was  a  Jacquemart  or  a 
Philip  van  Artevelde,"  says  a  Catholic  contemporary; 
''but  they  would  have  scorned  to  march  under  the  ban- 
ner of  a  brewer,  having  dared  to  raise  their  eyes  for  a 
chief  to  the  most  illustrious  warrior  of  his  age."  ^  No 
doubt,  had  Egmont  ever  listened  to  these  aspirations, 
he  might  have  taken  the  field  against  the  government 
with  an  invincible  force,  seized  the  capital,  imprisoned 
the  regent,  and  mastered  the  whole  country,  which  was 
entirely  defenseless,  before  Philip  would  have  had  time 
to  write  more  than  ten  despatches  upon  the  subject. 

These  hopes  of  the  reformers,  if  hopes  they  could  be 
called,  were  now  destined  to  be  most  bitterly  disap- 
pointed. Egmont  entered  Flanders,  not  as  a  chief  of 
rebels,  not  as  a  wise  pacificator,  but  as  an  unscrupulous 
partizan  of  government,  disposed  to  take  summary 
vengeance  on  all  suspected  persons  who  should  fall  in 
his  way.  He  ordered  numerous  executions  of  image- 
breakers  and  of  other  heretics.  The  whole  province 
1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  2  ibid.  3  njij. 


1566]  EGMONT  IN  FLANDERS  265 

was  in  a  state  of  alarm ;  for,  although  he  had  not  been 
furnished  by  the  regent  with  a  strong  body  of  troops, 
yet  the  name  of  the  conqueror  at  St.-Quentin  and  Grave- 
lines  was  worth  many  regiments.  His  severity  was  ex- 
cessive.i  His  sanguinary  exertions  were  ably  seconded 
also  by  his  secretary,  Bakkerzeel,  a  man  who  exercised 
the  greatest  influence  over  his  chief,  and  who  was  now 
fiercely  atoning  for  having  signed  the  Compromise  by 
persecuting  those  whom  that  league  had  been  formed 
to  protect.  "  Amid  all  the  perplexities  of  the  duchess 
regent,"  says  a  Walloon  historian,  "  this  virtuous  prin- 
cess was  consoled  by  the  exploits  of  Bakkerzeel,  gen- 
tleman in  Count  Egmont's  service.  On  one  occasion 
he  hanged  twenty  heretics,  including  a  minister,  at  a 
single  heat."  ^ 

Such  achievements  as  these  by  the  hands  or  the 
orders  of  the  distinguished  general  who  had  been  most 
absurdly  held  up  as  a  possible  protector  of  the  civil  and 
religious  liberties  of  the  country  created  profound  sen- 
sation. Flanders  and  Artois  were  filled  with  the  wives 
and  children  of  suspected  thousands  who  had  fled  the 
country  to  escape  the  wrath  of  Egmont.^  The  cries  and 
piteous  lamentations  of  these  unfortunate  creatures 
were  heard  on  every  side.  Count  Louis  was  earnestly 
implored  to  intercede  for  the  persecuted  reformers. 
"  You  who  have  been  so  nobly  gifted  by  Heaven,  you 
who  have  good  will  and  singular  bounty  written  upon 
your  face,"  said  Utenhove  to  Louis,  ''  have  the  power  to 
save  these  poor  victims  from  the  throats  of  the  ravenous 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  Compare  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc., 
ii.  282-297. 

2  Renom  de  France  MS.,  i.  33. 

3  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  296,  297. 


266  THE  EISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

wolves."^  The  count  responded  to  the  appeal,  and 
strove  to  soften  the  severity  of  Egmont,  without,  how- 
ever, producing  any  very  signal  effect.  Flanders  was 
soon  pacified,  nor  was  that  important  province  permitted 
to  enjoy  the  benefits  of  the  agreement  which  had  been 
extorted  from  the  duchess.  The  preachings  were  for- 
bidden, and  the  ministers  and  congregations  arrested 
and  chastised,  even  in  places  where  the  custom  had  been 
established  previously  to  the  23d  August.^  Certainly 
such  vigorous  exertions  upon  the  part  both  of  master 
and  man  did  not  savor  of  treason  to  Philip,  and  hardly 
seemed  to  indicate  the  final  doom  of  Egmont  and  Bak- 
kerzeel. 

The  course  of  Orange  at  Antwerp  was  consistent  with 
his  whole  career.  He  honestly  came  to  arrange  a  pacifi- 
cation, but  he  knew  that  this  end  could  be  gained  only 
by  loyally  maintaining  the  Accord  which  had  been 
signed  between  the  confederates  and  the  regent.  He 
came  back  to  the  city  on  the  26th  August,^  and  found 
order  partially  reestablished.  The  burghers  having  at 
last  become  thoroughly  alarmed,  and  the  fury  of  the 
image-breakers  entirely  appeased,  it  had  been  compara- 
tively easy  to  restore  tranquillity.  The  tranquillity, 
however,  rather  restored  itself,  and  when  the  calm  had 
succeeded  to  the  tempest,  the  placid  heads  of  the  burgo- 
masters once  more  emerged  from  the  waves. 

Three  image-breakers,  who  had  been  taken  in  the  act, 
were  hanged  by  order  of  the  magistrates  upon  the  28tli 
of  August.*    The  presence  of  Orange  gave  them  courage 

^  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  296,  297. 
2  Ibid.  3  Ibid.,  ii.  261. 

*  This  is  the  aeeoimt  of  Hoofd,  iii.  110,  111.  The  three  rioters 
were  executed,  not  by  command  of  the  prince  (as  stated  by  M. 


1566]  ORDER  267 

to  achieve  these  executions,  which  he  could  not  prevent, 
as  the  fifth  article  of  the  Accord  enjoined  the  chastise- 
ment of  the  rioters.  The  magistrates  chose  that  the 
^'chastisement"  on  this  occasion  should  be  exemplary, 
and  it  was  not  in  the  power  of- Orange  to  interfere  with 
the  regular  government  of  the  city  when  acting  accord- 
ing to  its  laws.  The  deed  was  not  his,  however,  and  he 
hastened,  in  order  to  obviate  the  necessity  of  further 
violence,  to  prepare  articles  of  agreement  upon  the 
basis  of  Margaret's  concessions.  Public  preaching  ac- 
cording to  the  Reformed  religion  had  already  taken 
place  within  the  city.  Upon  the  22d  possession  had 
been  taken  of  at  least  three  churches.  The  senate  had 
deputed  Pensionary  Wesenbeck  to  expostulate  with  the 
ministers,  for  the  magistrates  were  at  that  moment  not 
able  to  command.  Taffin,  the  Walloon  preacher,  had 
been  tractable,  and  had  agreed  to  postpone  his  exercises. 
He  furthermore  had  accompanied  the  pensionary  to 
the  cathedral,  in  order  to  persuade  Hermann  Modet  that 
it  would  be  better  for  him  likewise  to  defer  his  intended 
ministrations.^  They  had  found  that  eloquent  enthusi- 
ast already  in  the  great  church,  burning  with  impatience 
to  ascend  upon  the  ruins,  and  quite  unable  to  resist  the 
temptation  of  setting  a  Flemish  psalm  and  preaching  a 
Flemish  /ermon  within  the  walls  which  had  for  so  many 
centuries  been  vocal  only  to  the  Roman  tongue  and  the 
Roman  ritual.     All  that  he  would  concede  to  the  en- 

Groen  v.  Prinsterer,  Archives  et  Correspondance,  ii.  261),  but  by 
that  of  the  civic  authorities—"  en  alstoen  moedt  geschept  hebbende, 
ten  derden  daaghen  daar  naa,  drie  van  de  gevange  beeldstormers 
met  de  galge,  de  rest  met  ballingshap  oft  anders  straf ten."— Hoof d, 
ubi  sup. 

1  Bor,  ii.  85.     Hoofd,  iii.  102.     Wesenbeck. 


268  THE  EISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  KEPUBLIC         [1566 

treaties  of  his  colleague  and  of  the  magistrate  was  that 
his  sermon  should  be  short.  In  this,  however,  he  had 
overrated  his  powers  of  retention,  for  the  sermon  not 
only  became  a  long  one,  but  he  had  preached  another 
upon  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day.  The  city  of  Antwerp, 
therefore,  was  clearly  within  the  seventh  clause  of  the 
treaty  of  the  23d  August,  for  preaching  had  taken  place 
in  the  cathedral  previously  to  the  signing  of  that  Accord.^ 

Upon  the  2d  September,  therefore,  after  many  pro- 
tracted interviews  with  the  heads  of  the  Reformed  re- 
ligion, the  prince  drew  up  sixteen  articles  of  agreement 
between  them,  the  magistrates,  and  the  government, 
which  were  duly  signed  and  exchanged.^  They  were 
conceived  in  the  true  spirit  of  statesmanship,  and  could 
the  rulers  of  the  land  have  elevated  themselves  to  the 
mental  height  of  William  of  Nassau,  had  Philip  been 
capable  of  comprehending  such  a  mind,  the  prince,  who 
alone  possessed  the  power  in  those  distracted  times  of 
governing  the  wills  of  all  men,  would  have  enabled  the 
monarch  to  transmit  that  beautiful  cluster  of  provinces, 
without  the  loss  of  a  single  jewel,  to  the  inheritors  of 
his  crown. 

If  the  prince  were  playing  a  game,  he  played  it  honor- 
ably. To  have  conceived  the  thought  of  religious  toler- 
ation in  an  age  of  universal  dogmatism ;  to  have  labored 
to  produce  mutual  respect  among  conflicting  opinions 
at  a  period  when  many  dissenters  were  as  bigoted  as 
the  orthodox,  and  when  most  reformers  fiercely  pro- 
claimed, not  liberty  for  every  Christian  doctrine,  but 
only  a  new  creed  in  place  of  all  the  rest  f  to  have  admit- 

1  Bor,  ii.  85,  86.     Hoofd,  iii.  102.     Wesenbeck. 

2  Bor,  iii.  98,  99,  gives  the  articles. 
'  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1566]  TOLERATION  269 

ted  the  possibility  of  several  roads  to  heaven,  when 
zealots  of  all  creeds  would  shut  up  all  pathways  but 
their  own— if  such  sentiments  and  purposes  were  sins, 
they  would  have  been  ill  exchanged  for  the  best  virtues 
of  the  age.  Yet  no  doubt  this  was  his  crying  offense 
in  the  opinion  of  many  contemporaries.  He  was  now 
becoming  apostate  from  the  ancient  Church,  but  he  had 
long  thought  that  emperors,  kings,  and  popes  had  taken 
altogether  too  much  care  of  men's  souls  in  times  past, 
and  had  sent  too  many  of  them  prematurely  to  their 
great  account.  He  was  equally  indisposed  to  grant  full 
powers  for  the  same  purpose  to  Calvinists,  Lutherans, 
or  Anabaptists.  "  He  censured  the  severity  of  our  the- 
ologians," said  a  Catholic  contemporary,  accumulating 
all  the  religious  offenses  of  the  prince  in  a  single  para- 
graph, "  because  they  keep  strictly  the  constitutions  of 
the  Church  without  conceding  a  single  point  to  their 
adversaries ;  he  blamed  the  Calvinists  as  seditious  and 
unruly  people,  yet  nevertheless  had  a  horror  for  the 
imperial  edicts  which  condemned  them  to  death;  he 
said  it  was  a  cruel  thing  to  take  a  man's  life  for  sustain- 
ing an  erroneous  opinion ;  in  short,  he  fantasied  in  his 
imagination  a  kind  of  religion,  half  Catholic,  half  Re- 
formed, in  order  to  content  all  persons— a  system  which 
would  have  been  adopted  could  he  have  had  his  way."  ^ 
This  picture,  drawn  by  one  of  his  most  brilliant  and 
bitter  enemies,  excites  our  admiration  while  intended 
to  inspire  aversion. 

The  articles  of  agreement  at  Antwerp  thus  promul- 
gated assigned  three  churches  to  the  different  sects  of 
reformers,  stipulated  that  no  attempt  should  be  made 
by  Catholics  or  Protestants  to  disturb  the  religious  wor- 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


270  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

ship  of  each  other,  and  provided  that  neither  by  mutual 
taunts  in  their  sermons,  nor  by  singing  street  ballads, 
together  with  improper  allusions  and  overt  acts  of  hos- 
tility, should  the  good-fellowship  which  ought  to  reign 
between  brethren  and  fellow-citizens,  even  although 
entertaining  different  opinions  as  to  religious  rites  and 
doctrines,  be  for  the  future  interrupted.^ 

This  was  the  basis  upon  which  the  very  brief  religious 
peace,  broken  almost  as  soon  as  established,  was  con- 
cluded by  William  of  Orange,  not  only  at  Antwerp,  but 
at  Utrecht,^  Amsterdam,^  and  other  principal  cities 
within  his  government. 

The  prince,  however,  notwithstanding  his  unwearied 
exertions,  had  slender  hopes  of  a  peaceful  result.  He 
felt  that  the  last  step  taken  by  the  Reformation  had 
been  off  a  precipice.  He  liked  not  such  rapid  progress. 
He  knew  that  the  king  would  never  forgive  the  image- 
breaking.  He  felt  that  he  would  never  recognize  the 
Accord  of  the  23d  August.  Sir  Thomas  Gresham,  who, 
as  the  representative  of  the  Protestant  Queen  of  Eng- 
land in  the  great  commercial  metropolis  of  Europe,  was 
fully  conversant  with  the  turn  things  were  taking,  was 
already  advising  some  other  place  for  the  sale  of  English 
commodities.  He  gave  notice  to  his  government  that 
commerce  would  have  no  security  at  Antwerp  ''in  those 
brabbling  times."  He  was  on  confidential  terms  with 
the  prince,  who  invited  him  to  dine  upon  the  4th  Sep- 
tember, and  caused  Pensionary  Wesenbeck,  who  was 
also  present,  to  read  aloud  the  agreement  which  was 
that  day  to  be  proclaimed  at  the  town  house.  Orange 
expressed  himself,  however,  very  doubtfully  as  to  the 

1  Articles  in  Bor,  ii.  98,  99. 

2  Bor^  ii.  101,  102.  s  ibia..,  ii.  101. 


1566]  HORN  AT  TOURNAY  271 

future  prospects  of  the  provinces,  and  as  to  the  probable 
temper  of  the  king.  "  In  all  his  talke,"  says  Gresham, 
"the  Prince  saide  unto  me,  'I  know  this  will  nothing 
contente  the  King.' "  ^ 

While  Egmont  had  been  thus  busied  in  Flanders,  and 
Orange  at  Antwerp,  Count  Horn  had  been  doing  his  best 
in  the  important  city  of  Tournay.^  The  admiral  was 
not  especially  gifted  with  intellect,  nor  with  the  power 
of  managing  men,  but  he  went  there  with  an  honest 
purpose  of  seeing  the  Accord  executed,  intending,  if  it 
should  prove  practicable,  rather  to  favor  the  govern- 
ment than  the  reformers.  At  the  same  time,  for  the 
purpose  of  giving  satisfaction  to  the  members  of  "the 
religion,"  and  of  manifesting  his  sincere  desire  for  a 
pacification,  he  accepted  lodgings  which  had  been  pre- 
pared for  him  at  the  house  of  a  Calvinist  merchant  in 
the  city,3  rather  than  take  up  his  quarters  with  fierce 
old  Governor  Moulbais  in  the  citadel.  This  gave  much 
offense  to  the  Catholics,  and  inspired  the  reformers 
with  the  hope  of  having  their  preaching  inside  the  town. 
To  this  privilege  they  were  entitled,  for  the  practice  had 
already  been  established  there  previously  to  the  23d 
August.*  Nevertheless,  at  first  he  was  disposed  to  limit 
them,  in  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  the  duchess,  to 
extramural  exercises. 

Upon  his  arrival,  by  a  somewhat  ominous  conjunc- 
ture, he  had  supped  with  some  of  the  leading  citizens  in 
the  hall  of  the  "gehenna,"  or  torture-room,^  certainly 

1  Burgon,  ii.  161,  162. 

2  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  362,  note. 

3  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  36^°. 

*  Letter  of  Horn  to  Duchess  of  Parma  in  Foppens,  Supplement, 
ii.  393.  5  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  36^°. 


272  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

not  a  locality  calculated  to  inspire  a  healthy  appetite. 
On  the  following  Sunday  he  had  been  entertained  with 
a  great  banquet,  at  which  all  the  principal  burghers 
were  present,  held  in  a  house  on  the  market-place.^ 
The  festivities  had  been  interrupted  by  a  quarrel  which 
had  been  taking  place  in  the  cathedral.  Beneath  the 
vaults  of  that  edifice,  tradition  said  that  a  vast  treasure 
was  hidden,  and  the  canons  had  been  known  to  boast 
that  this  buried  wealth  would  be  sufficient  to  rebuild 
their  temple  more  magnificently  than  ever,  in  case  of 
its  total  destruction,^  The  admiral  had  accordingly 
placed  a  strong  guard  in  the  church  as  soon  as  he  ar- 
rived, and  commenced  very  extensive  excavations  in 
search  of  this  imaginary  mine.  The  regent  informed  her 
brother  that  the  count  was  prosecuting  this  work  with 
the  view  of  appropriating  whatever  might  be  found  to 
his  own  benefit,^  As  she  knew  that  he  was  a  ruined 
man,  there  seemed  no  more  satisfactory  mode  of  ac- 
counting for  these  proceedings.  Horn  had,  however, 
expressly  stated  to  her  that  every  penny  which  should 
come  into  his  possession  from  that  or  any  other  source 
would  carefully  be  restored  to  the  rightful  owners.* 
Nothing  of  consequence  was  ever  found  to  justify  the 
golden  legends  of  the  monks,  but  in  the  meantime  the 
money-diggers  gave  great  offense.  The  canons,  natu- 
rally alarmed  for  the  safety  of  their  fabulous  treasure, 
had  forced  the  guard  by  surreptitiously  obtaining  the 
countersign  from  a  certain  official  of  the  town.^    A 

1  De  la  Barre  MS.,  42^",  2  Ibid, 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II,,  i.  466-468. 
*  Letter  of  Horn  to  Duchess  of  Parma,  Foppens,  Supplement, 
ii.  427.     Compare  letter  of  duchess  to  Horn,  p.  408, 
6  De  la  Barre  MS.,  42»», 


1566]  EXCAVATIONS  IN  THE  CATHEDRAL  273 

quarrel  ensued,  which  ended  in  the  appearance  of  this 
personage,  together  with  the  commander  of  the  military- 
force  on  guard  in  the  cathedi'al,  before  the  banqueting 
company.  The  count,  in  the  rough  way  habitual  with 
him,  gave  the  culprit  a  sound  rebuke  for  his  intermed- 
dling, and  threatened,  in  case  the  offense  were  repeated, 
to  have  him  instantly  bound,  gagged,  and  forwarded 
to  Brussels  for  further  punishment.^  The  matter  thus 
satisfactorily  adjusted,  the  banquet  proceeded,  the  mer- 
chants present  being  all  delighted  at  seeing  the  said 
official,  who  was  exceedingly  unpopular,  "  so  well  huffed 
by  the  count."  -  The  excavations  were  continued  for  a 
long  time,  until  there  seemed  danger  of  destroying  the 
foundation  of  the  church,  but  only  a  few  bits  of  money 
were  discovered,  with  some  other  articles  of  small 
value.^ 

Horn  had  taken  his  apartments  in  the  city  in  order 
to  be  at  hand  to  suppress  any  tumults  and  to  inspire 
confidence  in  the  people.  He  had  come  to  a  city  where 
five  sixths  of  the  inhabitants  *  were  of  the  Reformed 
religion,  and  he  did  not,  therefore,  think  it  judicious 
to  attempt  violently  the  suppression  of  their  worship. 
Upon  his  arrival  he  had  issued  a  proclamation  ordering 
that  all  property  which  might  have  been  pillaged  from 
the  religious  houses  should  be  instantly  restored  to  the 
magistracy,  under  penalty  that  all  who  disobeyed  the 
command  should  ''  be  forthwith  strangled  at  the  gibbet." 
Nothing  was  brought  back,  however,  for  the  simple 

1  De  la  Barre  MS.,  42^0. 

2  "Fort  joyeulx  que  le  eontente  avoit  ainsi  espouffe  le  diet 
procureur . " — Ibid. 

3  Letter  of  Horn,  Foppens,  Supplement,  396. 

♦  De  la  Barre  MS.,  f.  46-60.     Foppens,  Supplements  396. 
VOL.  II.  —18 


274  THE  RISE   OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  (.1566 

reason  that  nothing  had  been  stolen.^  There  was  there- 
fore no  one  to  be  strangled. 

The  next  step  was  to  publish  the  Accord  of  23d 
August,  and  to  signify  the  intention  of  the  admiral  to 
enforce  its  observance.  The  preachings  were  as  enthu- 
siastically attended  as  ever,  while  the  storm  which  had 
been  raging  among  the  images  had  in  the  meantime 
been  entirely  allayed.  Congregations  of  fifteen  thou- 
sand were  still  going  to  hear  Ambrose  Wille  in  the 
suburbs,  but  they  were  very  tranquil  in  their  demeanor.^ 
It  was  ari'anged  between  the  admiral  and  the  leaders 
of  the  Reformed  consistories  that  three  places,  to  be 
selected  by  Horn,  should  be  assigned  for  their  places  of 
worship.^  At  these  spots,  which  were  outside  the  walls, 
permission  was  given  the  reformers  to  build  meeting- 
houses.* To  this  arrangement  the  duchess  formally 
gave  her  consent.^ 

Nicholas  Taffin,  councilor,  in  the  name  of  the  re- 
formers, made  '^a  brave  and  elegant  harangue"  before 
the  magistrates,  representing  that  as  on  the  most  mod- 
erate computation  three  quarters  of  the  population  were 
dissenters,  as  the  regent  had  ordered  the  construction 
of  the  new  temples,  and  as  the  Catholics  retained  pos- 
session of  aU  the  churches  in  the  city,  it  was  no  more 
than  fair  that  the  community  should  bear  the  expense 
of  the  new  buildings.  It  was  indignantly  replied,  how- 
ever, that  Catholics  could  not  be  exj)ected  to  pay  for  the 
maintenance  of  heresy,  particularly  when  they  had  just 
been   so   much    exasperated  by   the   image-breaking. 

1  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  382. 

2  De  la  Barre  MS.,  38  sqq. 

3  Ibid.,  44.  *  Ibid. 

5  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  407. 


1566]  TEMPLE-BUILDING  275 

Councilor  Taffin  took  nothing,  therefore,  by  his  "  hrave 
and  elegant  harangue,"  saving  a  small  vote  of  forty 
livres. 

The  building  was,  however,  immediately  commenced. 
Many  nobles  and  rich  citizens  contributed  to  the  work, 
some  making  donations  in  money,  others  giving  quan- 
tities of  oaks,  poplars,  elms,  and  other  timber-trees  to 
be  used  in  the  construction.  The  foundation  of  the 
first  temple,  outside  the  Porte  de  Coquerel,  was  imme- 
diately laid.  Vast  heaps  of  broken  images  and  other 
ornaments  of  the  desecrated  churches  were  most  un- 
wisely used  for  this  purpose,  and  the  Catholics  were 
exceedingly  enraged  at  beholding  those  male  and  female 
saints,  who  had  for  centuries  been  placed  in  such  ''  rev- 
erend and  elevated  positions,"  fallen  so  low  as  to  be  the 
foundation-stones  of  temples  whose  builders  denounced 
all  those  holy  things  as  idols.^ 

As  the  autumn  began  to  wane,  the  people  were  clam- 
orous for  permission  to  have  their  preaching  inside  the 
city.  The  new  buildings  could  not  be  finished  before 
the  winter;  but  in  the  meantime  the  camp-meetings 
were  becoming,  in  the  stormy  seasons  fast  approaching, 
a  very  inconvenient  mode  of  worship.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  duchess  was  furious  at  the  proposition,  and 
commanded  Horn  on  no  account  to  consent  that  the 
interior  of  Tournay  should  be  profaned  by  these  hereti- 
cal rites.2  It  was  in  vain  that  the  admiral  represented 
the  justice  of  the  claim,  as  these  exercises  had  taken 
place  in  several  of  the  city  churches  previously  to  the 
Accord  of  the  23d  of  August.^    That  agreement  had 

1  De  la  Barre  MS.,  46  sqq. 

2  Letter  of  Duchess  of  Parma,  Poppens,  Supplement,  ii.  406. 

3  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  393. 


276  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

been  made  by  the  duchess  only  to  be  broken.  She  had 
already  received  money  and  the  permission  to  make 
levies,  and  was  fast  assuming  a  tone  very  different  from 
the  abject  demeanor  which  had  characterized  her  in 
August.  Count  Horn  had  been  used  even  as  Egmont, 
Orange,  and  Hoogstraaten  had  been  employed,  in  order 
that  their  personal  influence  with  the  reformers  might 
be  turned  to  account.  The  tools  and  the  work  accom- 
plished by  them  were  to  be  thrown  away  at  the  most 
convenient  opportunity. 

The  admiral  was  placed  in  a  most  intolerable  posi- 
tion. An  honest,  commonplace,  sullen  kind  of  man,  he 
had  come  to  a  city  full  of  heretics,  to  enforce  conces- 
sions just  made  by  the  government  to  heresy.  He  soon 
found  himself  watched,  paltered  with,  suspected  by  the 
administration  at  Brussels.  Governor  Moulbais,  in  the 
citadel,  who  was  nominally  under  his  authority,  refused 
obedience  to  his  orders,  was  evidently  receiving  secret 
instructions  from  the  regent,  and  was  determined  to 
cannonade  the  city  into  submission  at  a  very  early  day. 
Horn  required  him  to  pledge  himself  that  no  fresh 
troops  should  enter  the  castle.  Moulbais  swore  he 
would  make  no  such  promise  to  a  living  soul.  The 
admiral  stormed  with  his  usual  violence,  expressed  his 
regret  that  his  brother  Montigny  had  so  bad  a  lieutenant 
in  the  citadel,  but  could  make  no  impression  upon  the 
determined  veteran,  who  knew  better  than  Horn  the 
game  which  was  preparing.^  Small  reinforcements 
were  daily  arriving  at  the  castle;  the  soldiers  of  the 
garrison  had  been  heard  to  boast  "  that  they  would  soon 
carve  and  eat  the  townsmen's  flesh  on  their  dressers,"  ^ 

1  De  la  Barre  MS.,  50^°. 

2  "  lis  mengheroient  leur  chair  sur  leur  trestchoir."— Ibid.,  24. 


1566]  THE  ADMIRAL  RECALLED  277 

and  all  the  good  effect  from  the  admirars  proclamation 
on  arriving  had  completely  vanished. 

Horn  complained  bitterly  of  the  situation  in  which  he 
was  placed.  He  knew  himself  the  mark  of  incessant  and 
calumnious  misrepresentation  both  at  Brussels  and  Ma- 
drid. He  had  been  doing  his  best,* at  a  momentous  crisis, 
to  serve  the  government  without  violating  its  engage- 
ments, but  he  declared  himself  to  be  neither  theologian 
nor  jurist,  and  incapable,  while  suspected  and  unassisted, 
of  performing  a  task  which  the  most  learned  doctors  of 
the  council  would  find  impracticable.  He  would  rather,  he 
bitterly  exclaimed,  endure  a  siege  in  any  fortress  by  the 
Turks  than  be  placed  in  such  a  position.  He  was  doing 
all  that  he  was  capable  of  doing,  yet  whatever  he  did 
was  wrong.  There  was  a  great  difference,  he  said, 
between  being  in  a  place  and  talking  about  it  at  a  dis- 
tance.^ 

In  the  middle  of  October  he  was  recalled  by  the 
duchess,  whose  letters  had  been  uniformly  so  ambiguous 
that  he  confessed  he  was  quite  unable  to  divine  their 
meaning.2  Before  he  left  the  city  he  committed  his 
most  unpardonable  crime.  Urged  by  the  leaders  of  the 
Reformed  congregations  to  permit  their  exercises  in  the 
Clothiers'  Hall  until  their  temples  should  be  finished, 
the  count  accorded  his  consent  provisionally,  and  subject 
to  revocation  by  the  regent,  to  whom  the  arrangement 
was  immediately  to  be  communicated. 

Horn  departed,  and  the  reformers  took  instant  pos- 
session of  the  hall.  It  was  found  in  a  very  dirty  and 
disorderly  condition,  encumbered  with  benches,  scaffold- 

1  Letter  to  Duchess  of  Parma,  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  412,  413- 

2  Letter  of  Horn  to  Philip  II.,  in  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii. 
499-506. 


278  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

ings,  stakes,  gibbets,  and  all  the  machinery  used  for 
public  executions  upon  the  market-place.  A  vast  body 
of  men  went  to  work  with  a  will,  scrubbing,  cleaning, 
whitewashing,  and  removing  all  the  foul  lumber  of  the 
hall,  singing  in  chorus,  as  they  did  so,  the  hymns  of 
Clement  Marot.  By  dinner-time  the  place  was  ready.^ 
The  pulpit  and  benches  for  the  congregation  had  taken 
the  place  of  the  gibbet  timber.  It  is  difficult  to  compre- 
hend that  such  work  as  this  was  a  deadly  crime.  Never- 
theless, Horn,  wlio  was  himself  a  sincere  Catholic,  had 
committed  the  most  mortal  of  all  his  offenses  against 
PhiKp  and  against  God  by  having  countenanced  so 
flagitious  a  transaction. 

The  admiral  went  to  Brussels.  Secretary  de  la 
Torre,^  a  very  second-rate  personage,  was  despatched  to 
Tournay  to  convey  the  orders  of  the  regent.  Governor 
Moulbais,  now  in  charge  of  affairs  both  civil  and  mili- 
tary, was  to  prepare  aU  things  for  the  garrison,  which 
was  soon  to  be  despatched  under  Noircarmes.  The 
duchess  had  now  arms  in  her  hands,  and  her  language 
was  bold.  La  Torre  advised  the  reformers  to  be  wise 
"while  the  rod  was  yet  green  and  growing,  lest  it 
should  be  gathered  for  their  backs ;  for  it  was  unbecom- 
ing in  subjects  to  make  bargains  with  their  king."^ 

1  De  la  Barre  MS.,  50^°. 

2  La  Torre  arrived  in  Tournay  upon  the  28th  October,  1566,  ac- 
cording to  the  narrative  of  De  la  Barre.  That  manuscript  (now  in 
the  Brussels  Archives,  and  the  only  copy  known  to  exist)  was 
afterward  laid  before  the  Blood-Council.  Secretary  La  Torre  has 
noted  in  several  places  on  the  margin,  "  the  author  lies " 
("I'autheur  ment").  The  passages  thus  discredited  by  this  very 
commonplace  tool  of  tyranny  have  only  reference  to  himself 
(Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  f°  57^°,  59). 

3  Renom  de  France  MS.,  i.  c.  23. 


1566]  DECEPTION  279 

There  was  hardly  any  decent  pretext  used  in  violating 
the  Accord  of  the  23d  August,  so  soon  as  the  govern- 
ment was  strong  enough  to  break  it.  It  was  always 
said  that  the  preachings  suppressed  had  not  been  es- 
tablished previously  to  that  arrangement;  but  the 
preachings  had  in  reality  obtained  almost  everywhere, 
and  were  now  universally  abolished.  The  ridiculous 
quibble  was  also  used  that  in  the  preachings  other 
reUgious  exercises  were  not  included,  whereas  it  was 
notorious  that  they  had  never  been  separated.  It  is, 
however,  a  gratuitous  task  to  unravel  the  deceptions  of 
tyranny  when  it  hardly  deigns  to  disguise  itself.  The 
dissimulations  which  have  resisted  the  influence  of  cen- 
turies are  more  worthy  of  serious  investigation,  and  of 
these  the  epoch  offers  us  a  sufficient  supply. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  the  city  of  Tournay  was 
completely  subjugated  and  the  Reformed  religion  sup- 
pressed. Upon  the  second  day  of  January,  1567,  the  Sei- 
gneur de  Noircarmes  arrived  before  the  gates  at  the  head 
of  eleven  companies,  with  orders  from  Duchess  Mar- 
garet to  strengthen  the  garrison  and  disarm  the  citizens.^ 
He  gave  the  magistrates  exactly  one  hour  and  a  half  to 
decide  whether  they  would  submit  without  a  murmur.^ 
He  expressed  an  intention  of  maintaining  the  Accord 
of  23d  August — a  ridiculous  affectation  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, as  the  event  proved.  The  notables  were 
summoned,  submission  agreed  upon,  and  within  the 
prescribed  time  the  magistrates  came  before  Noircarmes 
with  an  unconditional  acceptance  of  his  terms.^  That 
truculent  personage  told  them,  in  reply,  that  they  had 
done  wisely,  for  if  they  had  delayed  receiving  the  garri- 

1  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS. 

2  Ibid.,  77^0,  78.  3  iijid.    78VO. 


280  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [156G 

son  a  minute  longer  lie  would  have  instantly  burned  the 
city  to  ashes  and  put  every  one  of  the  inhahitants  to  the 
sword}  He  had  been  fully  authorized  to  do  so,  and 
subsequent  events  were  to  show,  upon  more  than  one 
dreadful  occasion,  how  capable  Noircarmes  would  have 
been  of  fulfilling  this  menace. 

The  soldiers,  who  had  made  a  forced  march  all  night, 
and  who  had  been  firmly  persuaded  that  the  city  would 
refuse  the  terms  demanded,  were  excessively  disap- 
pointed at  being  obliged  to  forego  the  sack  and  pillage 
upon  which  they  had  reckoned.^  Eight  or  nine  hun- 
dred rascally  peasants,  too,  who  had  followed  in  the 
skirts  of  the  regiments,  each  provided  with  a  great 
empty  bag,  which  they  expected  to  fill  with  booty  which 
they  might  purchase  of  the  soldiers  or  steal  in  the 
midst  of  the  expected  carnage  and  rapine,  shared  the 
discontent  of  the  soldiery,  by  whom  they  were  now 
driven  ignominiously  out  of  the  town.^  The  citizens 
were  immediately  disarmed.  All  the  fine  weapons 
which  they  had  been  obliged  to  purchase  at  their  own 
expense,  when  they  had  been  arranged  by  the  magis- 
trates under  eight  banners  for  defense  of  the  city 
against  tumult  and  invasion,  were  taken  from  them, 
the  most  beautiful  cutlasses,  carbines,  poniards,  and 
pistols  being  divided  by  Noircarmes  among  his  ofi&cers.* 
Thus  Tournay  was  tranquillized. 

1  "Disant  que  la  ville  estait  bien  eonseill^e  d'avoir  obey  a  Sa 
Maj.  sans  av'  fait  quelq"  rebellion,  ajoutant  que  si  quelque  resis- 
tance luy  heust  este  donnee  a  introduire  la  garnison,  qu'il  avoit 
charge  expresse  de  luy  bouter  par  forche  et  mettre  la  ville  en  feu 
et  tons  les  manans  et  habitans  au  fil  de  I'esp^e."— De  la  Barre  MS., 
78^0. 

2  Ibid.,  79.  3  Ibid.,  81.  *  Ibid.,  91. 


1566]  TREACHERY  OP  THE  DUCHESS  281 

During  the  whole  of  these  proceedings  in  Flanders, 
and  at  Antwerp,  Toui'nay,  and  Mechlin,  the  conduct  of 
the  duchess  had  been  marked  with  more  than  her  usual 
treacher}''.  She  had  been  disavowing  acts  which  the 
men  upon  whom  she  relied  in  her  utmost  need  had  been 
doing  by  her  authority ;  she  had  been  affecting  to  praise 
their  conduct,  while  she  was  secretly  misrepresenting 
their  actions  and  maligning  their  motives ;  and  she  had 
been  straining  every  nerve  to  make  foreign  levies,  while 
attempting  to  amuse  the  confederates  and  sectaries  with 
an  affectation  of  clemency. 

When  Orange  complained  that  she  had  been  censur- 
ing his  proceedings  at  Antwerp  and  holding  language 
unfavorable  to  his  character,  she  protested  that  she 
thoroughly  approved  his  arrangements,— excepting  only 
the  two  points  of  the  intramural  preachings  and  the 
permission  to  heretics  of  other  exercises  than  sermons, 
— and  that  if  she  were  displeased  with  him  he  might  be 
sure  that  elie  would  rather  tell  him  so  than  speak  ill  of 
him  behind  his  back.^  The  prince,  who  had  been  com- 
pelled by  necessity,  and  fully  authorized  by  the  terms 
of  the  Accord,  to  grant  those  two  points  which  were 
the  vital  matter  in  his  arrangements,  answered  very 
calmly  that  he  was  not  so  frivolous  as  to  believe  in  her 
having  used  language  to  his  discredit  had  he  not  been 
quite  certain  of  the  fact,  as  he  would  soon  prove  by 
evidence.2  Orange  was  not  the  man  to  be  deceived  as 
to  the  position  in  which  he  stood,  nor  as  to  the  character 
of  those  with  whom  he  dealt.  Margaret  wrote,  how- 
ever, in  the  same  vein  concerning  him  to  Hoogstraaten, 
affirming  that  nothing  could  be  further  from  her  inten- 

1  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  233-235. 
a  Ibid.,  239. 


282  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

tion  than  to  characterize  the  proceedings  of  "  her  cousin, 
the  Prince  of  Orange,  as  contrary  to  the  service  of  his 
Majesty;  knowing,  as  she  did,  how  constant  had  been 
his  affection,  and  how  diligent  his  actions,  in  the  cause 
of  God  and  the  king."  ^  She  also  sent  Councilor  d'As- 
sonleville  on  a  special  mission  to  the  prince,  instructing 
that  smooth  personage  to  inform  her  said  cousin  of 
Orange  that  he  was  and  always  had  been  "loved  and 
cherished  by  his  Majesty,  and  that,  for  herself,  she  had 
ever  loved  him  like  a  brother  or  a  child."  ^ 

She  wrote  to  Horn,  approving  of  his  conduct  in  the 
main,  although  in  obscure  terms,  and  expressing  great 
confidence  in  his  zeal,  loyalty,  and  good  intentions.^ 
She  accorded  the  same  praise  to  Hoogstraaten,  while  as 
to  Egmont,  she  was  perpetually  reproaching  him  for  the 
suspicions  which  he  seemed  obstinately  to  entertain  as 
to  her  disposition  and  that  of  Philip  in  regard  to  his 
conduct  and  character.* 

It  has  already  been  partly  seen  what  were  her  private 
sentiments  and  secret  representations  as  to  the  career 
of  the  distinguished  personages  thus  encouraged  and 
commended.  Her  pictures  were  painted  in  daily  dark- 
ening colors.  She  told  her  brother  that  Orange,  Eg- 
mont, and  Horn  were  about  to  place  themselves  at  the 
head  of  the  confederates,  who  were  to  take  up  arms  and 
had  been  levying  troops;  that  the  Lutheran  religion 
was  to  be  forcibly  established,  that  the  whole  power  of 
the  government  was  to  be  placed  in  the  triumvirate 
thus  created  by  those  seigniors,  and  that  Philip  was  in 

1  La  defense  du  Comte  de  Hoestrate,  95. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  391-397. 
»  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  420,  421,  436. 

*  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  493. 


1566]  CALUMNIATION  283 

reality  to  be  excluded  entirely  from  those  provinces 
wliich  were  his  ancient  patrimony.^  All  this  informa- 
tion she  had  obtained  from  Mansfeld,  at  whom  the 
nobles  were  constantly  sneering  as  at  a  faithful  valet 
who  would  never  receive  his  wages,^ 

She  also  informed  the  king  that  the  scheme  for  divid- 
ing the  country  was  already  arranged :  that  Augustus  of 
Saxony  was  to  have  Friesland  and  Overyssel;  Count 
Brederode,  Holland ;  the  dukes  of  Cleves  and  Lorraine, 
Gueldersj  the  King  of  France,  Flanders,  Artois,  and 
Hainault,  of  which  tenitories  Egmont  was  to  be  per- 
petual stadholder ;  the  Prince  of  Orange,  Brabant ;  and 
so  on  indefinitely.^  A  general  massacre  of  all  the  Catho- 
lics had  been  arranged  by  Orange,  Horn,  and  Egmont, 
to  commence  as  soon  as  the  king  should  put  his  foot  on 
shipboard  to  come  to  the  country.*  This  last  remark- 
able fact  Margaret  reported  to  Philip  upon  the  respec- 
table authority  of  Noircarmes.^ 

She  apologized  for  having  employed  the  service  of  these 
nobles,  on  the  ground  of  necessity.  Their  proceedings  in 
Flanders,  at  Antwerp,  Tournay,  Mechlin,  had  been 
highly  reprehensible,  and  she  had  been  obliged  to  dis- 
avow them  in  the  most  important  particulars.  As  for 
Egmont,  she  had  most  unwillingly  intrusted  forces  to 
his  hands  for  the  purpose  of  putting  down  the  Flemish 
sectaries.  She  had  been  afraid  to  show  a  want  of  con- 
fidence in  his  character,  but  at  the  same  time  she  be- 
lieved that  all  soldiers  under  Egmont's  orders  would  be 
so  many  enemies  to  the  king.^  Notwithstanding  his 
protestations  of  fidelity  to  the  ancient  religion  and  to 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  460,  461,  455,  456. 

2  Ibid.  3  Ibid.,  i.  473-476. 

<  Ibid.,  i.  484.  s  jbid.  6  ibid.,  i.  459. 


^84  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

his  Majesty,  she  feared  that  he  was  busied  with  some 
great  plot  against  God  and  the  king.^  When  we  re- 
member the  ruthless  manner  in  which  the  unfortunate 
count  had  actually  been  raging  against  the  sectaries 
and  the  sanguinary  proofs  which  he  had  been  giving  of 
his  fidelity  to  "God  and  the  king,"  it  seems  almost 
incredible  that  Margaret  could  have  written  down  all 
these  monstrous  assertions. 

The  duchess  gave,  moreover,  repeated  warnings  to 
her  brother  that  the  nobles  were  in  the  habit  of  obtain- 
ing possession  of  all  the  correspondence  between  Madrid 
and  Brussels,  and  that  they  spent  a  vast  deal  of  money 
in  order  to  read  her  own  and  Philip's  most  private 
letters.^  She  warned  him,  therefore,  to  be  upon  his 
guard,  for  she  believed  that  almost  all  their  despatches 
were  read.^  Such  being  the  case,  and  the  tenor  of 
those  documents  being  what  we  have  seen  it  to  be,  her 
complaints  as  to  the  incredulity*  of  those  seigniors  to 
her  affectionate  protestations  seem  quite  wonderful. 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  459. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  475.  3  i^id.,  i.  393. 

*  Ibid.,  i.    Correspondanee  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  passim. 


CHAPTER  IX 

Position  of  Orange— The  interview  at  Dendermonde— The  sup- 
posititious letters  of  Alava — Views  of  Egmont — Isolation  of  Orange 
—Conduct  of  Egmont  and  of  Horn — Confederacy  of  the  nobles 
dissolved — Weak  behavior  of  prominent  personages— Watchful- 
ness of  Orange— Convocation  of  States-General  demanded— 
Pamphlet  of  Orange— City  of  Valenciennes  refuses  a  garrison — 
Influence  of  La  Grange  and  De  Bray— City  declared  in  a  state  of 
siege — Invested  by  Noircarmes— Movements  to  relieve  the  place 
— Calvinists  defeated  at  Lannoy  and  at  Watrelots— Elation  of  the 
government—  The  siege  pressed  more  closely— Cruelties  practised 
upon  the  coimtry  people — Courage  of  the  inhabitants— Remon- 
strance to  the  Knights  of  the  Fleece— Conduct  of  Brederode — 
Orange  at  Amsterdam— New  oath  demanded  by  government- 
Orange  refuses— He  offers  his  resignation  of  all  offices— Meeting 
at  Breda— New  "  Request "  of  Brederode— He  creates  disturb- 
ances and  levies  troops  in  Antwerp— Conduct  of  Hoogstraaten— 
Plans  of  Brederode— Supposed  connivance  of  Orange— Alarm  at 
Brussels— Tholouse  at  Austruweel— Brederode  in  Holland— De 
Beauvoir  defeats  Tholouse — Excitement  at  Antwerp — Determined 
conduct  of  Orange— Three  days'  tumult  at  Antwerp  suppressed 
by  the  wisdom  and  courage  of  Orange. 

It  is  necessary  to  allude  to  certain  important  events 
contemporaneous  with  those  recorded  in  the  last  chapter, 
that  the  reader  may  thoroughly  understand  the  position 
of  the  leading  personages  in  this  great  drama  at  the 
close  of  the  year  1566. 

The  Prince  of  Orange  had,  as  we  have  seen,  been 

285 


286  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

exerting  all  his  energies  faithfully  to  accomplish  the 
pacification  of  the  commercial  metropolis  upon  the 
basis  assented  to  beforehand  by  the  duchess.  He  had 
established  a  temporary  religious  peace,  by  which  alone 
at  that  crisis  the  gathering  tempest  could  be  averted; 
but  he  had  permitted  the  law  to  take  its  course  upon 
certain  rioters,  who  had  been  regularly  condemned  by 
courts  of  justice.  He  had  worked  day  and  night— not- 
withstanding immense  obstacles,  calumnious  misstate- 
ments, and  conflicting  opinions — to  restore  order  out  of 
chaos;  he  had  freely  imperiled  his  own  life,  dashing 
into  a  tumultuous  mob  on  one  occasion,  wounding 
several  with  the  halberd  which  he  snatched  from  one  of 
his  guard,^  and  dispersing  almost  with  his  single  arm  a 
dangerous  and  threatening  insurrection;  and  he  had 
remained  in  Antwerp,  at  the  pressing  solicitations  of 
the  magistracy,  who  represented  that  the  lives  of  not  a 
single  ecclesiastic  would  be  safe  as  soon  as  his  back  was 
turned,  and  that  all  the  merchants  would  forthwith 
depart  from  the  city.^  It  was  nevertheless  necessary 
that  he  should  make  a  personal  visit  to  his  government 
of  Holland,  where  similar  disorders  had  been  prevailing, 
and  where  men  of  all  ranks  and  parties  were  clamoring 
for  their  stadholder. 

Notwithstanding  all  his  exertions,  however,  he  was 
thoroughly  aware  of  the  position  in  which  he  stood 
toward  the  government.  The  sugared  phrases  of  Mar- 
garet, the  deliberate  commendation  of  the  "  benign  and 
debonair"  Philip,  produced  no  effect  upon  this  states- 
man, who  was  accustomed  to  look  through  and  through 

1  Antwerpseh  Chronike,  p.  96 ;  cited  by  Groen  van  Prinsterer, 
ii.  310. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  239. 


1566]  SECRET   THOUGHTS  OF  OEANGE  287 

men's  actions  to  the  core  of  their  hearts.  In  the  hearts 
of  Philip  and  Margaret  he  already  saw  treachery  and 
revenge  indelibly  imprinted.  He  had  been  especially 
indignant  at  the  insult  which  the  duchess  regent  had 
put  upon  him  by  sending  Duke  Eric  of  Brunswick  with 
an  armed  force  into  Holland  in  order  to  protect  Gouda, 
Woerden,  and  other  places  within  the  prince's  own  gov- 
ernment.i  He  was  thoroughly  conversant  with  the 
general  tone  in  which  the  other  seigniors  and  himself 
were  described  to  their  sovereign.  He  was  already  con- 
vinced that  the  country  was  to  be  conquered  by  foreign 
mercenaries,  and  that  his  own  life,  with  those  of  many 
other  nobles,  was  to  be  sacrificed.^  The  moment  had 
arrived  in  which  he  was  justified  in  looking  about  him 
for  means  of  defense,  both  for  himself  and  his  country, 
if  the  king  should  be  so  insane  as  to  carry  out  the  pur- 
poses which  the  prince  suspected.  The  time  was  fast 
approaching  in  which  a  statesman  placed  upon  such  an 
elevation  before  the  world  as  that  which  he  occupied 
would  be  obliged  to  choose  his  part  for  life.  To  be  the 
unscrupulous  tool  of  tyranny,  a  rebel,  or  an  exile,  was 
his  necessary  fate.  To  a  man  so  prone  to  read  the 
future,  the  moment  for  his  choice  seemed  already  ar- 
rived. Moreover,  he  thought  it  doubtful,  and  events 
were  most  signally  to  justify  his  doubts,  whether  he 
could  be  accepted  as  the  instrument  of  despotism,  even 
were  he  inclined  to  prostitute  himself  to  such  service. 
At  this  point,  therefore,  undoubtedly  began  the  trea- 
sonable thoughts  of  William  the  Silent,  if  it  be  treason 
to  attempt  the  protection  of  ancient  and  chartered  lib- 
erties against  a  foreign  oppressor.     He  despatched  a 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  ii.  322-326. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  391-397. 


288  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

private  envoy  to  Egmont/  representing  the  grave  sus- 
picions manifested  by  the  duchess  in  sending  Duke  Eric 
into  Holland,  and  proposing  that  means  should  be  taken 
into  consideration  for  obviating  the  dangers  with  which 
the  country  was  menaced.  Catholics  as  well  as  Protes- 
tants, he  intimated,  were  to  be  crushed  in  one  universal 
conquest  as  soon  as  Philip  had  completed  the  formidable 
preparations  which  he  was  making  for  invading  the 
provinces.  For  himself,  he  said,  he  would  not  remain 
in  the  land  to  witness  the  utter  desolation  of  the  people, 
nor  to  fall  an  unresisting  victim  to  the  vengeance  which 
he  foresaw.  If,  however,  he  might  rely  upon  the  co- 
operation of  Egmont  and  Horn,  he  was  willing,  with 
the  advice  of  the  States- General,  to  risk  preparations 
against  the  armed  invasion  of  Spaniards  by  which  the 
country  was  to  be  reduced  to  slavery.  It  was  incum- 
bent, however,  upon  men  placed  as  they  were,  "not  to 
let  the  grass  grow  under  their  feet,"  and  the  moment 
for  action  was  fast  approaching.^ 

This  was  the  scheme  which  Orange  was  willing  to 
attempt.  To  make  use  of  his  own  influence  and  that  of 
his  friends,  to  interpose  between  a  sovereign  insane  with 
bigotry  and  a  people  in  a  state  of  religious  frenzy,  to 
resist  brutal  violence  if  need  should  be  by  force,  and  to 
compel  the  sovereign  to  respect  the  charters  which  he 
had  sworn  to  maintain,  and  which  were  far  more  ancient 
than  his  sovereignty— so  much  of  treason  did  Wilham 
of  Orange  already  contemplate,  for  in  no  other  way 
could  he  be  loyal  to  his  country  and  his  own  honor. 

Nothing  came  of  this  secret  embassy,  for  Egmont's 
heart  and  fate  were  already  fixed.     Before  Orange  de- 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  ii.  323-326. 

2  Ibid. 


1566]  CONFERENCE  AT   DENDERMONDE  289 

parted,  however,  for  the  north,  where  his  presence  in 
the  Dutch  provinces  was  now  imperatively  required,  a 
memorable  interview  took  place  at  Dendermonde  be- 
tween Orange,  Horn,  Egmont,  Hoogstraaten,  and  Count 
Louis.i  The  nature  of  this  conference  was  probably 
similar  to  that  of  the  secret  mission  from  Orange  to 
Egmont  just  recorded.  It  was  not  a  long  consultation. 
The  gentlemen  met  at  eleven  o'clock,  and  conversed 
untU  dinner  was  ready,  which  was  between  twelve  and 
one  in  the  afternoon.  They  discussed  the  contents  of 
a  letter  recently  received  by  Horn  from  his  brother 
Montigny  at  Segovia,  giving  a  lively  picture  of  Philip's 
fury  at  the  recent  events  in  the  Netherlands,  and  express- 
ing the  baron's  own  astonishment  and  indignation  that 
it  had  been  impossible  for  the  seigniors  to  prevent  such 
outrages  as  the  public  preaching,  the  image-breaking, 
and  the  Accord.  They  had  also  some  conversation  con- 
cerning the  dissatisfaction  manifested  by  the  duchess  at 
the  proceedings  of  Count  Horn  at  Tournay,  and  they 
read  a  very  remarkable  letter  which  had  been  furnished 
them  as  having  been  written  by  the  Spanish  envoy  in 
Paris,  Don  Francis  of  Alava,  to  Margaret  of  Parma. 
This  letter  was  forged.  At  least,  the  regent,  in  her 
Italian  correspondence,  asserted  it  to  be  fictitious,^  and 
in  those  secret  letters  to  Philip  she  usually  told  the 
truth.  The  astuteness  of  William  of  Orange  had  in 
this  instance  been  deceived.     The  striking  fidelity,  how- 

1  Foppens,  Supplement,  i.  (Proems  d'Egmont)  73-76,  166-170 
(Proems  de  Homes).  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  ii.  360  sqq.  Correspon- 
dance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.,  Introduction  of  Gachard,  74  sqq. 
Compare  Bor,  ii.  108;  Hoofd,  ii.  114;  Strada,  v.  230  sqq. ;  Benti- 
voglio,  iii.  42  sqq. ;  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  474-476. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  476. 

VOL.  II.— 19 


290  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

ever,  with  which  the  present  and  future  policy  of  the 
government  was  sketched,  the  accuracy  with  which 
many  unborn  events  were  foreshadowed,  together  with 
the  minute  touches  which  gave  an  air  of  genuineness  to 
the  fictitious  despatch,  might  well  deceive  even  so  saga- 
cious an  observer  as  the  prince. 

The  letters  ^  alluded  to  the  deep  and  long-settled  hos- 
tility of  Philip  to  Orange,  Horn,  and  Egmont,  as  to  a 
fact  entirely  within  the  writer's  knowledge  and  that  of 
his  correspondent,  but  urged  upon  the  duchess  the  as- 
sumption of  an  extraordinary  degree  of  apparent  cordi- 
ahty  in  her  intercourse  with  them.  It  was  the  king's 
intention  to  use  them  and  to  destroy  them,  said  the 
writer,  and  it  was  the  regent's  duty  to  second  the  design. 
'^  The  tumults  and  troubles  have  not  been  without  their 
secret  concurrence,"  said  the  supposititious  Alava,  "and 
your  Highness  may  rest  assured  that  they  will  be  the 
first  upon  whom  his  Majesty  will  seize,  not  to  confer 
benefits,  but  to  chastise  them  as  they  deserve.  Your 
Highness,  however,  should  show  no  symptom  of  displea- 
sure, but  should  constantly  maintain  in  their  minds  the 
idea  that  his  Majesty  considers  them  as  the  most  faith- 
ful of  his  servants.  While  they  are  persuaded  of  this, 
they  can  be  more  easily  used,  but  when  the  time  comes 
they  will  be  treated  in  another  manner.  Your  Highness 
may  rest  assured  that  his  Majesty  is  not  less  inclined 
than  your  Highness  that  they  should  receive  the  punish- 
ment which  they  merit."  ^  The  duchess  was  further- 
more recommended  ''to  deal  with  the  three  seigniors 
according  to  the  example  of  the  Spanish  government 

1  The  letters  are  given  by  Bor,  ii.  109,  110,  without  a  doubt  as 
to  their  genuineness. 

2  Bor,  ubi  sup. 


1566]  THE  FOKGED  LETTER  291 

in  its  intercourse  with  the  envoys  Berghen  and  Montigny, 
who  are  met  with  a  smiling  face,  but  who  are  closely 
watched,  and  who  will  never  be  permitted  to  leave  Spain 
alive."  1  The  remainder  of  the  letter  alludes  to  supposed 
engagements  between  France  and  Spain  for  the  extirpa- 
tion of  heresy,  from  which  allusion  to  the  generally 
accepted  but  mistaken  notion  as  to  the  Bayonne  confer- 
ence, a  decided  proof  seems  to  be  furnished  that  the 
letter  was  not  genuine.  Great  complaints,  however,  are 
made  as  to  the  conduct  of  the  queen  regent,  who  is 
described  as  "  a  certain  lady  well  known  to  her  High- 
ness," and  as  ''a  person  without  faith,  friendship,  or 
truth;  the  most  consummate  hypocrite  in  the  world." 
After  giving  instances  of  the  duplicity  manifested  by 
Catherine  de'  Medici,  the  writer  continues :  "  She  sends 
her  little  black  dwarf  to  me  upon  frequent  errands,  in 
order  that  by  means  of  this  spy  she  may  worm  out  my 
secrets.  I  am ,  however,  upon  my  guard,  and  flatter  myself 
that  I  learn  more  from  him  than  she  from  me.  She  shall 
never  be  able  to  boast  of  having  deceived  a  Spaniard."  ^ 
An  extract  or  two  from  this  very  celebrated  document 
seemed  indispensable,  because  of  the  great  importance 
attached  to  it,  both  at  the  Dendermonde  conference 
and  at  the  trials  of  Egmont  and  Horn.  The  contem- 
porary writers  of  Holland  had  no  doubt  of  its  genu- 
ineness, and,  what  is  more  remarkable,  Strada,  the 
historiographer  of  the  Farnese  family,  after  quoting 
Margaret's  denial  of  the  authenticity  of  the  letter,  coolly 
observes:  "Whether  this  were  only  an  invention  of 
the  conspirators,  or  actually  a  despatch  from  Alava,  I 
shall  not  decide.  It  is  certain,  however,  that  the  duchess 
declared  it  to  be  false."  ^ 

1  Bor,  ubi  sup.  2  i^id.  3  gtrada,  v.  231. 


292  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

Certainly,  as  we  read  the  epistles,  and  observe  how 
profoundly  the  writer  seems  to  have  sounded  the  deep 
guile  of  the  Spanish  cabinet,  and  how  distinctly  events 
then  far  in  the  future  are  indicated,  we  are  tempted  to 
exclaim:  "Aut  Alava,  aut  Diabolus";  either  the  envoy 
wrote  the  despatch,  or  Orange.  Who  else  could  look 
into  the  future  and  into  Philip's  heart  so  unerringly  ? 

As  the  charge  has  never  been  made,  so  far  as  we  are 
aware,  against  the  prince,  it  is  superfluous  to  discuss  the 
amount  of  immorality  which  should  belong  to  such  a 
deception.  A  tendency  to  employ  stratagem  in  his 
warfare  against  Spain  was,  no  doubt,  a  blemish  upon 
his  high  character.  Before  he  is  condemned,  however, 
in  the  court  of  conscience,  the  ineffable  wiles  of  the 
policy  with  which  he  had  to  combat  must  be  thoroughly 
scanned,  as  well  as  the  pure  and  lofty  purpose  for  which 
his  life's  long  battle  was  fought. 

There  was  doubtless  some  conversation  at  Dender- 
monde  on  the  propriety  or  possibility  of  forcible  resis- 
tance to  a  Spanish  army,  with  which  it  seemed  probable 
that  Philip  was  about  to  invade  the  provinces  and  take 
the  lives  of  the  leading  nobles.  Count  Louis  was  in 
favor  of  making  provision  in  Germany  for  the  accom- 
plishment of  this  purpose.  It  is  also  highly  probable 
that  the  prince  may  have  encouraged  the  proposition. 
In  the  sense  of  his  former  communication  to  Egmont, 
he  may  have  reasoned  on  the  necessity  of  making  levies 
to  sustain  the  decisions  of  the  States-General  against 
violence.  There  is,  however,  no  proof  of  any  such  fact. 
Egmont,  at  any  rate,  opposed  the  scheme,  on  the  ground 
that  ^'  it  was  wrong  to  entertain  any  such  ill  opinion  of 
so  good  a  king  as  Philip,  that  he  had  never  done  any- 
thing unjust  toward  his  subjects,  and  that  if  any  one 


1566]  EESULT   OF   THE  CONFEEENCE  293 

was  in  fear,  he  had  better  leave  the  country."  ^  Egmont, 
moreover,  doubted  the  authenticity  of  the  letters  from 
Alava,  but  agreed  to  carry  them  to  Brussels  and  to  lay 
them  before  the  regent.  That  lady,  when  she  saw  them, 
warmly  assured  the  count  that  they  were  inventions.^ 

The  conference  broke  up  after  it  had  lasted  an  hour 
and  a  half.  The  nobles  then  went  to  dinner,  at  which 
other  persons  appear  to  have  been  present,  and  the  cele- 
brated Dendermonde  meeting  was  brought  to  a  close. 
After  the  repast  was  finished,  each  of  the  five  nobles 
mounted  his  horse  and  departed  on  his  separate  way.^ 

From  this  time  forth  the  position  of  these  leading 
seigniors  became  more  sharply  defined.  Orange  was 
left  in  almost  complete  isolation.  Without  the  assis- 
tance of  Egmont  any  effective  resistance  to  the  impend- 
ing invasion  from  Spain  seemed  out  of  the  question. 
The  count,  however,  had  taken  his  irrevocable  and  fatal 
resolution.  After  various  oscillations  during  the  stormy 
period  which  had  elapsed,  his  mind,  notwithstanding 
all  the  disturbing  causes  by  which  it  had  hitherto  been 
partially  influenced,  now  pointed  steadily  to  the  point 
of  loyalty.  The  guidance  of  that  pole-star  was  to  lead 
him  to  utter  shipwreck.  The  unfortunate  noble,  in- 
trenched against  all  fear  of  Philip  by  the  brazen  wall 
of  an  easy  conscience,  saw  no  fault  in  his  past  at  which 
he  should  grow  pale  with  apprehension.     Moreover,  he 

1  Procfes  d'Egmont,  Foppens,  i.  75. 

3  Letter  of  Egmont  in  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  ii.  400,  401. 

3  Proces  d'Egmont,  73-7G ;  Proces  de  Homes,  166-170,  Foppens, 
Supplement.  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii..  Intro- 
duction of  M.  Gacliard,  Ixxiv.  sqq.  Compare  Bor,  ii.  108;  Hoofd, 
iii.  114 ;  Strada,  v.  230  sqq. ;  Bentivoglio,  iii.  42  sqq. ;  Correspon- 
dance de  Philippe  H.,  i.  474-476. 


294  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

was  sanguine  by  nature,  a  Catholic  in  religion,  a  royalist 
from  habit  and  conviction.  Henceforth  he  was  deter- 
mined that  his  services  to  the  crown  should  more  than 
counterbalance  any  idle  speeches  or  insolent  demonstra- 
tions of  which  he  might  have  been  previously  guilty. 

Horn  pursued  a  different  course,  but  one  which  sep- 
arated him  also  from  the  prince,  while  it  led  to  the  same 
fate  which  Egmont  was  blindly  pursuing.  The  admiral 
had  committed  no  act  of  treason.  On  the  contrary,  he 
had  been  doing  his  best,  under  most  difficult  circum- 
stances, to  avert  rebellion  and  save  the  interests  of  a 
most  ungrateful  sovereign.  He  was  now  disposed  to 
wrap  himself  in  his  virtue,  to  retreat  frorn  a  court  life, 
for  which  he  had  never  felt  a  vocation,^  and  to  resign 
all  connection  with  a  government  by  which  he  felt  him- 
self very  badly  treated.  Moody,  wrathful,  disappointed, 
ruined,  and  calumniated,  he  would  no  longer  keep  terms 
with  king  or  duchess.  He  had  griefs  of  long  standing 
against  the  whole  of  the  royal  family.  He  had  never 
forgiven  the  emperor  for  refusing  him,  when  young,  the 
appointment  of  chamberlain.^  He  had  served  Philip 
long  and  faithfully,  but  he  had  never  received  a  stiver 
of  salary  or  merced,  notwithstanding  all  his  work  as 
state  councilor,  as  admiral,  as  superintendent  in  Spain, 
while  his  younger  brother  had  long  been  in  receipt  of 
nine  or  ten  thousand  florins  yearly.  He  had  spent  four 
hundred  thousand  florins  in  the  king's  service ;  his 
estates  were  mortgaged  to  their  full  value ;  he  had  been 
obliged  to  sell  his  family  plate.^    He  had  done  his  best 

1  "Aiant  par  trop  cognu  n'estre  ma  vocation  estre  en  court," 
etc.  — Letter  of  Horn  to  his  secretary,  Alonzo  de  la  Loo,  Foppens, 
ii.  470,  471. 

2  Renom  de  France  MS.,  i.  c.  31.  ^  Ibid. 


1566]  THE  ADMIRAL'S  POSITION  295 

in  Tournay  to  serve  tlie  duchess,  and  he  had  averted 
the  Sicilian  Vespers,  which  had  been  imminent  at  his 
arrival.  1  He  had  saved  the  Catholics  from  a  general 
massacre,  yet  he  heard  nevertheless  from  Montigny 
that  all  his  actions  were  distorted  in  Spain  and  his 
motives  blackened.^  His  heart  no  longer  inclined  him 
to  continue  in  Philip's  service,  even  were  he  furnished 
with  the  means  of  doing  so.  He  had  instructed  his 
secretary,  Alonzo  de  la  Loo,  whom  he  had  despatched 
many  months  previously  to  Madrid,  that  he  was  no 
longer  to  press  his  master's  claims  for  a  merced,  but 
to  signify  that  he  abandoned  all  demands  and  resigned 
all  posts.  He  could  turn  hermit  for  the  rest  of  his  days, 
as  well  as  the  Emperor  Charles.^  If  he  had  little,  he 
could  live  upon  little.  It  was  in  this  sense  that  he 
spoke  to  Margaret  of  Parma,  to  AssonleviUe,  to  all 
around  him.  It  was  precisely  in  this  strain  and  temper 
that  he  wrote  to  Philip,  indignantly  defending  his  course 
at  Tournay,  protesting  against  the  tortuous  conduct  of 
the  duchess,  and  bluntly  declaring  that  he  would  treat 
no  longer  with  ladies  upon  matters  which  concerned  a 
man's  honor.* 

Thus,  smarting  under  a  sense  of  gross  injustice,  the 
admiral  expressed  himself  in  terms  which  Philip  was 
not  likely  to  forgive.  He  had  undertaken  the  pacifica- 
tion of  Tournay,  because  it  was  Montigny's  government, 
and  he  had  promised  his  services  whenever  they  should 
be  requisite.  Horn  was  a  loyal  and  affectionate  brother, 
and  it  is  pathetic  to  find  him  congratulating  Montigny 
on  being,  after  all,  better  off  in  Spain  than  in  the 

1  Eenom  de  France  MS.,  i.  e.  31.  2  Ibid. 

3  Ibid.     Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  506-509. 
*  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  501-505. 


296  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

Netherlands.^  Neither  loyalty  nor  the  sincere  Catholi- 
cism for  which  Montigny  at  this  period  commended  Horn 
in  his  private  letters  ^  could  save  the  two  brothers  from 
the  doom  which  was  now  fast  approaching. 

Thus  Horn,  blind  as  Egmont, — not  being  aware  that 
a  single  step  beyond  implicit  obedience  had  created  an 
impassable  gulf  between  Phihp  and  himself, — resolved 
to  meet  his  destiny  in  sullen  retirement.  Not  an  entirely 
disinterested  man,  perhaps,  but  an  honest  one  as  the 
world  went,  mediocre  in  mind,  but  brave,  generous,  and 
direct  of  purpose,  goaded  by  the  shafts  of  calumny, 
hunted  down  by  the  whole  pack  which  fawned  upon 
power  as  it  grew  more  powerful,  he  now  retreated  to 
his  ''desert,"  as  he  called  his  ruined  home  at  Weerdt,^ 
where  he  stood  at  bay,  growling  defiance  at  the  regent, 
at  Philip,  at  all  the  world. 

Thus  were  the  two  prominent  personages  upon  whose 
cooperation  Orange  had  hitherto  endeavored  to  rely 
entirely  separated  from  him.  The  confederacy  of  nobles, 
too,  was  dissolved,  having  accomplished  little,  notwith- 
standing all  its  noisy  demonstrations,  and  having  lost 
all  credit  with  the  people  by  the  formal  cassation  of  the 

1  "Pour  fasch6  que  estes  \k,  estes  plus  a  votre  aise  que  iei."— 
Letter  to  Montigny,  Foppens,  ii.  496. 

2  "J'ai  re§u  ung  grand  contentement  de  Fassuranee  que  me 
donnez,  que  nuls  ne  basteront  de  vous  faire  changer  d'opinion,  en 
chose  qui  touche  le  fait  de  la  religion  aneienne,  qui  est  certes  con- 
forme  a  ce  que  j'en  ay  tousjours  ferement  pens6  et  eru,  ors  que  le 
diable  est  subtil,  et  ses  ministres.  Je  n'ay  failly  de  le  faire  en- 
tendre aux  lieux  que  m'avez  escrit."— Montigny  to  Horn,  26th 
May,  1567. 

The  whole  letter  is  published  in  Willems,  Mengelingen  van  His- 
torisch  Vaderlandschen  Inhoud  (Antwerpen,  1827-30),  pp.  325-334. 

3  Proces  de  Homes,  Foppens,  Supplement. 


1566]  FOLLY  OF  THE  CONFEDERATES  297 

Compromise  in  consequence  of  the  Accord  of  August.^ 
As  a  body,  they  had  justified  the  sarcasm  of  Hubert 
Languet  that  "  the  confederated  nobles  had  ruined  their 
country  by  their  folly  and  incapacity."  They  had  pro- 
faned a  holy  cause  by  indecent  orgies,  compromised  it 
by  seditious  demonstrations,  abandoned  it  when  most 
in  need  of  assistance.  Bakkerzeel  had  distinguished 
himself  by  hanging  sectaries  in  Flanders.  ''  Golden 
Fleece"  de  Hammes,  after  creating  great  scandal  in 
and  about  Antwerp  since  the  Accord,  had  ended  by 
accepting  an  artillery  commission  in  the  emperor's  army, 
together  with  three  hundred  crowns  for  convoy  from 
Duchess  Margaret.2  Culemburg  was  serving  the  cause 
of  religious  freedom  by  defacing  the  churches  within 
his  ancestral  domains,  pulling  down  statues,  dining  in 
chapels,  and  giving  the  holy  wafer  to  his  parrot.^  No- 
thing could  be  more  stupid  than  these  acts  of  irreverence, 
by  which  Catholics  were  offended  and  honest  patriots 
disgusted.  Nothing  could  be  more  opposed  to  the  sen- 
timents of  Orange,  whose  first  principle  was  abstinence 
by  all  denominations  of  Christians  from  mutual  insults. 
At  the  same  time,  it  is  somewhat  revolting  to  observe 
the  indignation  with  which  such  offenses  were  regarded 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  ii.  282. 

2  Unpublished  letter,  13tli  September,  Margaret  of  Parma  to 
Philip  II.,  Brussels  Archives  MS.  The  duchess  expressed  great 
regret  that  she  was  prohibited  by  the  statutes  of  the  order  of 
which  De  Hammes  was  a  servant  or  official  from  arresting  and 
punishing  him  for  his  crimes.  Her  legal  advisers,  Viglius,  As- 
sonleville,  and  the  rest,  were  to  make  new  discoveries  with  regard 
to  these  privileges,  when  not  servants  merely,  but  illustrious  chev- 
aliers of  the  order,  were  to  be  put  to  death.  Compare  Correspon- 
dance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  463. 

3  Ibid.,  i.  472,  480,  481. 


298  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1566 

by  men  of  the  most  abandoned  character.  Thus,  Ar- 
menteros,  whose  name  was  synonymous  with  govern- 
ment swindling,  who  had  been  rolling  up  money  year 
after  year  by  peculations,  auctioneering  of  high  posts 
in  church  and  state,  bribes,  and  all  kinds  of  picking  and 
stealing,  could  not  contain  his  horror  as  he  referred  to 
wafers  eaten  by  parrots  or  ''toasted  on  forks "^  by 
renegade  priests,  and  poured  out  his  emotions  on  the 
subject  into  the  faithful  bosom  of  Antonio  Perez,  the 
man  with  whose  debaucheries,  political  villainies,  and 
deliberate  murders  all  Europe  was  to  ring. 

No  doubt  there  were  many  individuals  in  the  confed- 
eracy for  whom  it  was  reserved  to  render  honorable  ser- 
vice in  the  national  cause.  The  names  of  Louis  of  Nassau, 
Marnix  of  Sainte-Aldegonde,  Bernard  de  Merode,  were 
to  be  written  in  golden  letters  in  their  country's  roUs ; 
but  at  this  moment  they  were  impatient,  inconsiderate, 
out  of  the  control  of  Orange.  Louis  was  anxious  for 
the  king  to  come  from  Spain  with  his  army,  and  for 
''  the  bear-dance  to  begin."  -  Brederode,  noisy,  bawling, 
and  absurd  as  ever,  was  bringing  ridicule  upon  the 
national  cause  by  his  buffoonery,  and  endangering  the 
whole  people  by  his  inadequate  yet  rebellious  exer- 
tions. 

What  course  was  the  Prince  of  Orange  to  adopt  ?  He 
could  find  no  one  to  comprehend  his  views.  He  felt 
certain  at  the  close  of  the  year  that  the  purpose  of  the 
government  was  fixed.  He  made  no  secret  of  his  de- 
termination never  to  lend  himself  as  an  instrument  for 
the  contemplated  subjugation  of  the  people.     He  had 

^  "  Asar  en  un  asador."— Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  480, 
481,  Tomas  Armenteros  to  Antonio  Perez. 
2  Archives  et  Correspondance,  ii.  309. 


1566]  THE  WATCHMAN  299 

repeatedly  resigned  all  his  offices.  He  was  now  deter- 
mined that  the  resignation  once  for  all  should  be  accepted. 
If  he  used  dissimulation,  it  was  because  Phihp's  decep- 
tion permitted  no  man  to  be  frank.  If  the  sovereign 
constantly  disavowed  all  hostile  purposes  against  his 
people,  and  manifested  extreme  affection  for  the  men 
whom  he  had  already  doomed  to  the  scaffold,  how  could 
the  prince  openly  denounce  him?  It  was  his  duty  to 
save  his  country  and  his  friends  from  impending  ruin. 
He  preserved,  therefore,  an  attitude  of  watchfulness. 
Philip,  in  the  depth  of  his  cabinet,  was  under  a  constant 
inspection  by  the  sleepless  prince.  The  sovereign  as- 
sured his  sister  that  her  apprehensions  about  their  cor- 
respondence were  groundless.  He  always  locked  up  his 
papers,  and  took  the  key  with  him.^  Nevertheless,  the 
key  was  taken  out  of  his  pocket  and  the  papers  read. 
Orange  was  accustomed  to  observe  that  men  of  leisure 
might  occupy  themselves  with  philosophical  pursuits 
and  with  the  secrets  of  nature,  but  that  it  was  his  busi- 
ness to  study  the  hearts  of  kings.^  He  knew  the  man 
and  the  woman  with  whom  he  had  to  deal.  We  have 
seen  enough  of  the  policy  secretly  pursued  by  Philip 
and  Margaret  to  appreciate  the  accuracy  with  which  the 
prince,  groping  as  it  were  in  the  dark,  had  judged  the 
whole  situation.  Had  his  friends  taken  his  warnings, 
they  might  have  lived  to  render  services  against  tyranny. 
Had  he  imitated  their  example  of  false  loyalty  there 
would  have  been  one  additional  victim,  more  illustrious 
than  all  the  rest,  and  a  whole  country  hopelessly  en- 
slaved. 

It  is  by  keeping  these  considerations  in  view  that  we 

^  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  512. 
2  Strada,  v.  234. 


300  THE  EISE  OF   THE   DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1566 

can  explain  his  connection  with  such  a  man  as  Brede- 
rode.  The  enterprises  of  that  noble,  of  Tholouse  and 
others,  and  the  resistance  of  Valenciennes,  could  hardly 
have  been  prevented  even  by  the  opposition  of  the 
prince.  But  why  should  he  take  the  field  against  men 
who,  however  rashly  or  ineffectually,  were  endeavoring 
to  oppose  tyranny,  when  he  knew  himself  already  pro- 
scribed and  doomed  by  the  tyrant?  Such  loyalty  he 
left  to  Egmont.  Till  late  in  the  autumn  he  had  still 
believed  in  the  possibility  of  convoking  the  States-Gen- 
eral, and  of  making  preparations  in  Germany  to  enforce 
their  decrees. 

The  confederates  and  sectaries  had  boasted  that  they 
could  easily  raise  an  army  of  sixty  thousand  men  within 
the  provinces,^  that  twelve  hundred  thousand  florins 
monthly  would  be  furnished  by  the  rich  merchants  of 
Antwerp,^  and  that  it  was  ridiculous  to  suppose  that  the 
German  mercenaries  enrolled  by  the  duchess  in  Sax- 
ony, Hesse,  and  other  Protestant  countries  would  ever 
render  serious  assistance  against  the  adherents  of  the 
Reformed  religion.^  "Without  placing  much  confidence 
in  such  exaggerated  statements,  the  prince  might  well 
be  justified  in  believing  himself  strong  enough,  if  backed 
by  the  confederacy,  by  Egmont,  and  by  his  own  bound- 

1  "  Mesmes  osent  aueuns  des  confederez  et  sectaires  menasser 
d'oser  d'armes  et  force  contre  moi.  .  ~  .  Se  vantans  que  I'on  fera 
venir  en  annes  contre  moy  cinquante  on  soixante  mil  hommes  de 
ces  pays  sans  les  estrangiers."— Unpublished  letter  of  Margaret  of 
Parma,  heretofore  cited,  Brussels  Archives  MS. 

2  "Disans  avoir  les  bourses  des  march ans  d'Anvers  qui  en  ce 
cas  leur  fumiront  par  mois  plus  de  xii*  mil  florins,"  etc. — Ibid. 

^  "  Que  en  fait  de  la  religion  les  dits  Alemans  les  favoriseront 
oires  qu'ilz  soient  en  la  soulde  de  V""®  Mat^  et  consequemment 
oseront  plus  tot  barbouiller  quelque  chose."— Ibid. 


1566]  CONVOCATION  OF  ESTATES  DESIEED  301 

less  influence,  both  at  Antwerp  and  in  his  own  govern- 
ment, to  sustain  the  constituted  authorities  of  the  nation 
even  against  a  Spanish  army,  and  to  interpose  with  le- 
gitimate and  irresistible  strength  between  the  insane 
tyrant  and  the  country  which  he  was  preparing  to 
crush.  It  was  the  opinion  of  the  best-informed  Catho- 
lics that,  if  Egmont  should  declare  for  the  confederacy, 
he  could  take  the  field  with  sixty  thousand  men  and 
make  himself  master  of  the  whole  country  at  a  blow.^ 
In  conjunction  with  Orange,  the  moral  and  physical 
force  would  have  been  invincible. 

It  was  therefore  not  Orange  alone,  but  the  Catholics 
and  Protestants  alike,  the  whole  population  of  the 
country,  and  the  duchess  regent  herself,  who  desired  the 
convocation  of  the  estates.  Notwithstanding  Philip's 
deliberate  but  secret  determination  never  to  assemble 
that  body,  although  the  hope  was  ever  to  be  held  out 
that  they  should  be  convened,  Margaret  had  been  most 
importunate  that  her  brother  should  permit  the  measure. 
''  There  was  less  danger,"  she  felt  herself  compelled  to 
say,  "  in  assembKng  than  in  not  assembling  the  states ; 
it  was  better  to  preserve  the  Catholic  religion  for  a  part 
of  the  country  than  to  lose  it  altogether."  ^  <'  The  more 
it  was  delayed,"  she  said,  "  the  more  ruinous  and  desper- 
ate became  the  public  affairs.  If  the  measure  were 
postponed  much  longer,  aU  Flanders,  half  Brabant,  the 
whole  of  Holland,  Zealand,  Guelders,  Tournay,  Lille, 

1  "  Vous  I'eussiez  veu  marcher  en  campaigne  avec  une  arm^e  de 
60,000  hommes  et  avoir  reduict  en  sa  puissance  la  ville  de  Bru- 
xelles  .  .  ,  par  un  exploit  soudain  se  fust  aisement  empar^  de  la 
principaulte  du  Pays-Bas,"  etc.— Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  "C'est  moins  mal  les  assembler  que  point  assembler,"  etc.— 
Unpublished  letter  of  Duchess  of  Parma. 


302  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

Mechlin,  would  be  lost  forever,  without  a  chance  of 
ever  restoring  the  ancient  religion."  ^  The  country,  in 
short,  was  ''  without  faith,  king,  or  law,"  ^  and  nothing 
worse  could  be  apprehended  from  any  deliberation  of 
the  States-General.  These  being  the  opinions  of  the 
duchess,  and  according  to  her  statement  those  of  nearly 
all  the  good  Catholics  in  the  country,  it  could  hardly 
seem  astonishing  or  treasonable  that  the  prince  should 
also  be  in  favor  of  the  measure. 

As  the  duchess  grew  stronger,  however,  and  as  the 
people,  aghast  at  the  fate  of  Tournay  and  Valenciennes, 
began  to  lose  courage,  she  saw  less  reason  for  assem- 
bling the  states.  Orange,  on  the  other  hand,  completely 
deserted  by  Egmont  and  Horn,  and  having  little  confi- 
dence in  the  characters  of  the  ex-confederates,  remained 
comparatively  quiescent,  but  watchful. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  an  important  pamphlet  ^  from 
his  hand  was  circulated,  in  which  his  views  as  to  the 
necessity  of  allowing  some  degree  of  religious  freedom 
were  urged  upon  the  royal  government  with  his  usual 
sagacity  of  thought,  moderation  of  language,  and 
modesty  in  tone.  The  man  who  had  held  the  most 
important  civil  and  military  offices  in  the  country  almost 
from  boyhood,  and  who  was  looked  up  to  by  friend  and 
foe  as  the  most  important  personage  in  the  three  mil- 
lions of  its  inhabitants,  apologized  for  his  '^  presumption  " 
in  coming  forward  publicly  with  his  advice.  '^  I  would 
not,"  he  said,  "  in  matters  of  such  importance,  affect  to 

1  Unpublished  letter  of  Duchess  of  Parma. 

2  "  Estant  quasi  tout  le  pays  sans  f oy,  roy  et  loy,  et  le  peu  que 
demeure  entier  s'en  va  joumellement  empirant."— Ibid. 

3  Archives  et  Correspondance,  ii.  429-450.  Compare  Hopper, 
Kec.  et  M6m.,  iii.     It  is  also  given  in  Bor,  iii.  131-133. 


1566]  THE  PAMPHLET  303 

be  wiser  or  to  make  greater  pretensions  than  my  age 
or  experience  warrants,  yet  seeing  affairs  in  such  per- 
plexity, I  will  rather  incur  the  risk  of  being  charged 
with  forwardness  than  neglect  that  which  I  consider 
my  duty."  ^ 

This,  then,  was  the  attitude  of  the  principal  person- 
ages in  the  Netherlands  and  the  situation  of  affairs  at 
the  end  of  the  eventful  year  1566,  the  last  year  of  peace 
which  the  men  then  living  or  their  children  were  to 
know.  The  government,  weak  at  the  commencement, 
was  strong  at  the  close.  The  confederacy  was  broken 
and  scattered.  The  Request,  the  beggar  banquets,  the 
public  preaching,  the  image-breaking,  the  Accord  of 
August,  had  been  followed  by  reaction.  Tournay  had 
accepted  its  garrison.  Egmont,  completely  obedient  to 
the  crown,  was  compelling  all  the  cities  of  Flanders  and 
Artois  to  receive  soldiers  sufficient  to  maintain  implicit 
obedience  and  to  extinguish  all  heretical  demonstra- 
tions, so  that  the  regent  was  at  comparative  leisure  to 
effect  the  reduction  of  Valenciennes. 

This  ancient  city,  in  the  province  of  Hainault,  and  on 
the  frontier  of  France,  had  been  founded  by  the  Emperor 
Valentiuian,  from  whom  it  had  derived  its  name.^  Ori- 
ginally established  by  him  as  a  city  of  refuge,  it  had 
received  the  privilege  of  affording  an  asylum  to  debtors, 
to  outlaws,  and  even  to  murderers.  This  ancient  right 
had  been  continued,  under  certain  modifications,  even 
till  the  period  with  which  we  are  now  occupied.^  Never, 
however,  according  to  the  government,  had  the  right  of 
asylum,  even  in  the  wildest  times,  been  so  abused  by  the 
city  before.     What  were  debtors,  robbers,  murderers, 

1  Archives  et  Correspondanee,  ii.  430,  431. 

2  Guicciardini,  458  sqq.  3  Ibid. 


304  THE  EISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1566 

compared  to  heretics?  yet  these  worst  enemies  of  their 
race  swarmed  in  the  rebellious  city,  practising  even  now 
the  foulest  rites  of  Calvin,  and  obeying  those  most 
pestilential  of  all  preachers,  Guido  de  Bray  and  Pere- 
grine de  la  Grange.  The  place  was  the  hotbed  of 
heresy  and  sedition,  and  it  seemed  to  be  agreed,  as  by 
common  accord,  that  the  last  struggle  for  what  was 
called  the  new  religion  should  take  place  beneath  its 
walls.i 

Pleasantly  situated  in  a  fertile  valley,  provided  with 
very  strong  fortifications  and  very  deep  moats,  Valen- 
ciennes, with  the  Schelde  flowing  through  its  center, 
and  furnishing  the  means  of  laying  the  circumjacent 
meadows  under  water,  was  considered  in  those  days 
almost  impregnable.^  The  city  was  summoned,  almost 
at  the  same  time  as  Tournay,  to  accept  a  garrison. 
This  demand  of  government  was  met  by  a  peremptory 
refusal.  Noircarmes,  toward  the  middle  of  December, 
ordered  the  magistrates  to  send  a  deputation  to  confer 
with  him  at  Conde.  Pensionary  Outreman  accordingly 
repaired  to  that  neighboring  city,  accompanied  by  some 
of  his  colleagues.^  This  committee  was  not  unfavorable 
to  the  demands  of  government.  The  magistracies  of 
the  cities,  generally,  were  far  from  rebellious;  but  in 
the  case  of  Valenciennes  the  real  power  at  that  moment 
was  with  the  Calvinist  consistory  and  the  ministers. 
The  deputies,  after  their  return  from  Conde,  summoned 
the  leading  members  of  the  Reformed  religion,  together 
with  the  preachers.     It  was  urged  that  it  was  their  duty 

1  "...  II  sembloit  que  de  la  fortune  de  Valenciennes  de- 
pendoit  eelle  de  toute  la  gueuserie."— Valenciennes  MS. 

2  Guicciardini,  ubi  supra. 

3  Valenciennes  MS. 


1566]  VALENCIENNES  305 

forthwith  to  use  their  influence  in  favor  of  the  demand 
made  by  the  government  upon  the  city.i 

'^  May  I  grow  mute  as  a  fish,"  answered  De  la  Grange, 
stoutly,  "  may  the  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth, 
before  I  persuade  my  people  to  accept  a  garrison  of 
cruel  mercenaries,  by  whom  their  rights  of  conscience 
are  to  be  trampled  upon  !  "  ^ 

Councilor  Outreman  reasoned  with  the  fiery  minister 
that  if  he  and  his  colleague  were  afraid  of  their  own 
lives,  ample  provision  should  be  made  with  government 
for  their  departure  under  safe-conduct.  La  Grange 
replied  that  he  had  no  fears  for  himself,  that  the  Lord 
would  protect  those  who  preached  and  those  who  be- 
lieved in  his  holy  Word,  but  that  he  would  not  forgive 
them  should  they  now  bend  their  necks  to  his  enemies.' 

It  was  soon  very  obvious  that  no  arrangement  could 
be  made.  The  magistrates  could  exert  no  authority, 
the  preachers  were  all-powerful,  and  the  citizens,  said  a 
Catholic  inhabitant  of  Valenciennes,  "  allowed  them- 
selves to  be  led  by  their  ministers  like  oxen."*  Upon 
the  17th  December,  1566,  a  proclamation  was  accord- 
ingly issued  by  the  duchess  regent,  declaring  the  city 
in  a  state  of  siege,  and  all  its  inhabitants  rebels.^  The 
crimes  for  which  this  penalty  was  denounced  were 
elaborately  set  forth  in  the  edict.  Preaching  according 
to  the  Reformed  religion  had  been  permitted  in  two  or 
three  churches,  the  sacrament  according  to  the  Calvin- 
istic  manner  had  been  publicly  administered,  together 
with  a  renunciation  by  the  communicants  of  their  ad- 

1  Valenciennes  MS. 

2  Ibid.    Pontus  Payen  MS.  3  ibid.     Ibid. 
*  Valenciennes  MS. 

5  The  proclamation  is  given  in  Bor,  iii.  134-136. 

VOL.  II.— 20 


306  THE  RISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1566 

hesion  to  tlie  Catholic  Church,  and  now  a  rebellious 
refusal  to  receive  the  garrison  sent  to  them  by  the 
duchess  had  been  added  to  the  list  of  their  iniquities. 
For  offenses  like  these  the  regent  deemed  it  her  duty  to 
forbid  all  inhabitants  of  any  city,  village,  or  province 
of  the  Netherlands  holding  communication  with  Valenci- 
ennes, buying  or  selling  with  its  inhabitants,  or  furnish- 
ing them  with  provisions,  on  pain  of  being  considered 
accomplices  in  their  rebellion,  and  as  such  of  being 
executed  with  the  halter,  i 

The  city  was  now  invested  by  Noircarmes  with  all 
the  troops  which  could  be  spared.  The  confederates 
gave  promises  of  assistance  to  the  beleaguered  citizens ; 
Orange  privately  encouraged  them  to  hold  out  in  their 
legitimate  refusal  ;2  Brederode  and  others  busied  them- 
selves with  hostile  demonstrations  which  were  destined 
to  remain  barren ;  but  in  the  meantime  the  inhabitants 
had  nothing  to  rely  upon  save  their  own  stout  hearts 
and  arms. 

At  first  the  siege  was  sustained  with  a  light  heart. 
Frequent  sallies  were  made,  smart  skirmishes  were 
ventured,  in  which  the  Huguenots,  on  the  testimony  of 
a  most  bitter  Catholic  contemporary,  conducted  them- 
selves with  the  bravery  of  veteran  troops,  and  as  if  they 
had  done  nothing  all  their  lives  but  fight  ;^  forays  were 
made  upon  the  monasteries  of  the  neighborhood  for  the 
purpose  of  procuring  supplies,  and  the  broken  statues 

1  Proclamation  in  Bor,  ubi  sup. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  Preface,  cxlix.,  cl., 
notes. 

3  "  Sortoient  journellement  aux  escarmouches  combattans  avec 
hardiesse  et  dexterity  comme  si  toutte  leur  vie  n'eussent  faict 
aultre  chose  que  porter  les  armes."— Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1566]  THE  CITY  INVESTED.  307 

of  the  dismantled  churches  were  used  to  build  a  bridge 
across  an  arm  of  the  river,  which  was  called  in  derision 
the  Bridge  of  Idols.^  Noircarmes  and  the  six  officers 
under  him,  who  were  thought  to  be  conducting  their 
operations  with  languor,  were  christened  the  "seven 
sleepers."  ^  Gigantic  spectacles,  three  feet  in  circumfer- 
ence, were  planted  derisively  upon  the  ramparts,  in 
order  that  the  artillery,  which  it  was  said  that  the  papists 
of  Arras  were  sending,  might  be  seen  as  soon  as  it 
should  arrive.^  Councilor  Outreman,  who  had  left  the 
city  before  the  siege,  came  into  it  again,  on  commission 
from  Noircarmes.  He  was  received  with  contempt ;  his 
proposals  on  behalf  of  the  government  were  answered 
with  outcries  of  fury;  he  was  pelted  with  stones,  and 
was  very  glad  to  make  his  escape  alive.*  The  pulpits 
thundered  with  the  valiant  deeds  of  Joshua,  Judas  Mac- 
cabasus,  and  other  Bible  heroes.^  The  miracles  wrought 
in  their  behalf  served  to  encourage  the  enthusiasm  of 
the  people,  while  the  movements  making  at  various 
points  in  the  neighborhood  encouraged  a  hope  of  a 
general  rising  throughout  the  country. 

Those  hopes  were  destined  to  disappointment.  There 
were  large  assemblages  made,  to  be  sure,  at  two  points. 
Nearly  three  thousand  sectaries  had  been  collected  at 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  "Les  gueux  les  appelloient  les  sept  dormans."— Valenciennes 
MS. 

3  "Us  avoient  fiehez  sur  leurs  ramparts  de  fort  longues  pieques 
et  an  bout  d'icelles  attache  de  fort  grandes  lunettes  aintes  trois 
pieds  en  diametre,  et  quand  on  leur  demandoit  a  quoy  elles  ser- 
vaient,  respondaient  joyeusement  que  c'estoit  pour  descouvir  de 
plus  long  I'artillerie  que  les  papistes  d' Arras  debvoient  envoier," 
etc.— Pontus  Payen  MS. 

*  Valenciennes  MS.  ^  Ibid. 


308  THE  RISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

Lannoy  under  Pierre  Cornaille,  who,  having  been  a  lock- 
smith and  afterward  a  Calvinist  preacher,  was  now  dis- 
posed to  try  his  fortune  as  a  general.^  His  band  was, 
however,  disorderly.  Rustics  armed  with  pitchforks, 
young  students  and  old  soldiers  out  of  employment, 
furnished  with  rusty  matchlocks,  pikes,  and  halberds, 
composed  his  force.'^  A  company  similar  in  character, 
and  already  amounting  to  some  twelve  hundred  in 
number,  was  collecting  at  Watrelots.^  It  was  hoped 
that  an  imposing  array  would  soon  be  assembled,  and 
that  the  two  bands,  making  a  junction,  would  then 
march  to  the  relief  of  Valenciennes.  It  was  boasted 
that  in  a  very  short  time  thu'ty  thousand  men  would  be 
in  the  field.*  There  was  even  a  fear  of  some  such  result 
felt  by  the  Catholics. 

It  was  then  that  Noircarmes  and  his  ^'  seven  sleepers  " 
showed  that  they  were  awake.  Early  in  January,  1567, 
that  fierce  soldier,  among  whose  vices  slotlifulness  was 
certainly  never  reckoned  before  or  afterward,  fell  upon 
the  locksmith's  army  at  Lannoy,  while  the  Seigneur  de 
Rassinghem  attacked  the  force  at  Watrelots  on  the  same 
day.^  Noircarmes  destroyed  half  his  enemies  at  the 
very  first  charge.  The  ill-assorted  rabble  fell  asunder 
at  once.  The  preacher  fought  weU,  but  his  undisci- 
plined force  fled  at  the  first  sight  of  the  enemy.  Those 
who  carried  harquebuses  threw  them  down  without  a 
single  discharge,  that  they  might  run  the  faster.  At 
least  a  thousand  were  soon  stretched  dead  upon  the 

1  Valenciennes  MS.     Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

3  Ibid.  *  Ibid. 

5  Ibid.  Valenciennes  MS.  Compare  Hoofd,  iii.  125;  Strada, 
vi.  256,  257 ;  Vit.  Viglii,  49. 


1567]  THE  TEIUMPH  309 

field  5  others  were  hunted  into  the  river.  Twenty-six 
hundred,  according  to  the  Catholic  accounts,  were  ex- 
terminated in  an  hour.^ 

Rassinghem,  on  his  part,  with  five  or  six  hundred 
regulars,  attacked  TeriePs  force,  numbering  at  least 
twice  as  many.  Half  of  these  were  soon  cut  to  pieces 
and  put  to  flight.  Six  hundred,  however,  who  had  seen 
some  service,  took  refuge  in  the  cemetery  of  Watrelots. 
Here,  from  behind  the  stone  wall  of  the  inclosure,  they 
sustained  the  attack  of  the  Catholics  with  some  spirit.^ 
The  repose  of  the  dead  in  the  quiet  country  churchyard 
was  disturbed  by  the  uproar  of  a  most  sanguinary  con- 
flict. The  temporary  fort  was  soon  carried,  and  the 
Huguenots  retreated  into  the  church.  A  rattling  har- 
quebusade  was  poured  in  upon  them  as  they  struggled 
in  the  narrow  doorway.^  At  least  four  hundred  corpses 
were  soon  strewn  among  the  ancient  graves.  The  rest 
were  hunted  into  the  church,  and  from  the  church  into 
the  belfry.  A  fire  was  then  made  in  the  steeple  and  kept 
up  till  all  were  roasted  or  suffocated.*  Not  a  man 
escaped. 

This  was  the  issue  in  the  first  stricken  field  in  the 
Netherlands  for  the  cause  of  religious  liberty.  It  must 
be  confessed  that  it  was  not  very  encouraging  to  the 
lovers  of  freedom.  The  partizans  of  government  were 
elated  in  proportion  to  the  apprehension  which  had 
been  felt  for  the  result  of  this  rising  in  the  Walloon 
country.  '^  These  good  hypocrites,"  wrote  a  correspon- 
dent of  Orange,  "are  lifting  up  their  heads  like  so 
many  dromedaries.     They  are  becoming  unmanageable 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  iii.  7,  8.  Compare  Strada, 
ubi  sup. ;  Hoofd,  ubi  sup. ;  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS.  3  ibid.  <  Ibid. 


310  THE  RISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

with  pride."  1  The  Duke  of  Aerschot  and  Count  Meg- 
hen  gave  great  banquets  in  Brussels,  where  all  the  good 
chevaliers  drank  deep  in  honor  of  the  victory,  and  to 
the  health  of  his  Majesty  and  madame.  '^  I  saw  Berlay- 
mont  just  go  by  the  window,"  wrote  Schwartz  to  the 
prince.  "  He  was  coming  from  Aerschot's  dinner,  with 
a  face  as  red  as  the  cardinal's  new  hat."  ^ 

On  the  other  hand,  the  citizens  of  Valenciennes  were 
depressed  in  equal  measure  with  the  exultation  of  their 
antagonists.  There  was  no  more  talk  of  seven  sleepers 
now,  no  more  lunettes  stuck  upon  lances  to  spy  the  com- 
ing forces  of  the  enemy.  It  was  felt  that  the  govern- 
ment was  wide  awake  and  that  the  city  would  soon  see 
the  impending  horrors  without  telescopes.  The  siege 
was  pressed  more  closely.  Noircarmes  took  up  a  com- 
manding position  at  St.-Armand,  by  which  he  was 
enabled  to  cut  off  all  communication  between  the  city 
and  the  surrounding  country.  All  the  villages  in  the 
neighborhood  were  pillaged,  all  the  fields  laid  waste. 
All  the  infamies  which  an  insolent  soldiery  can  inflict 
upon  helpless  peasantry  were  daily  enacted.  Men  and 
women  who  attempted  any  communication  with  the 
city  were  murdered  in  cold  blood  by  hundreds.^  The 
villagers  were  plundered  of  their  miserable  possessions ; 
children  were  stripped  naked  in  the  midst  of  winter  for 
the  sake  of  the  rags  which  covered  them ;  matrons  and 
virgins  were  sold  at  public  auction  by  the  tap  of  drum  •* 

1  "  Haulcent  pour  I'heure  la  teste  comme  trommetaires,  et  ne 
sont  quacy  plus  traictables  d'orgueil."— Archives  et  Correspon- 
dance,  iii.  13.  ^  ibid.^  iii.  9. 

3  Remonstrance  addressed  by  the  inhabitants  of  Valenciennes 
to  the  Knights  of  the  Fleece,  §  9,  apud  Bor,  iii.  136-141. 

*  Ibid. 


1567]  COURAaE  OF  THE  INHABITANTS  311 

sick  and  wounded  wretches  were  burned  over  slow  fires 
to  afford  amusement  to  the  soldiers,^  In  brief,  the 
whole  unmitigated  curse  which  military  power  inflamed 
by  religious  bigotry  can  embody  had  descended  upon 
the  heads  of  these  unfortunate  provincials  who  had 
dared  to  worship  God  in  Christian  churches  without  a 
Roman  ritual. 

Meantime  the  city  maintained  a  stout  heart  still.  The 
whole  population  were  arranged  under  different  banners. 
The  rich  and  poor  alike  took  arms  to  defend  the  walls 
which  sheltered  them.^  The  town  paupers  were  enrolled 
in  three  companies,  which  bore  the  significant  title  of 
the  Tous-nuds,  or  the  "  Stark-nakeds,"  ^  and  many  was 
the  fierce  conflict  delivered  outside  the  gates  by  men 
who,  in  the  words  of  a  Catholic  then  in  the  city,  might 
rather  be  taken  for  ''experienced  veterans  than  for 
burghers  and  artisans."*  At  the  same  time,  to  the 
honor  of  Valenciennes,  it  must  be  stated,  upon  the  same 
incontestable  authority,  that  not  a  Catholic  in  the  city 
was  injured  or  insulted.  The  priests  who  had  remained 
there  were  not  allowed  to  say  mass,  but  they  never  met 
with  an  opprobrious  word  or  look  from  the  people.^ 

The  inhabitants  of  the  city  called  upon  the  confeder- 
ates for  assistance.    They  also  issued  an  address  to  the 

1  Remonstrance,  etc.,  ubi  sup. 

2  Valenciennes  MS. 
»  Ibid. 

*  "  Qu'on  eut  pris  tons  pour  de  vieux  routiers  et  soldats  experi- 
mentes,  et  non  pas  pour  des  bourgeois  et  artisans  de  prime  abord." 
—Ibid. 

5  "  Si  ne  recuerent  ils  toutes  fois  aucunes  injures  ny  fascherie 
except-e  qu'on  leur  defendit  de  dire  la  messe,  laquelle  le  bon 
Prelat  de  S.  Jean  disoit  secrettement  en  sa  chambre  pour  sa  con- 
solation."— Ibid. 


312  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

Knights  of  the  Fleece,^  a  paper  which.narrated  the  story 
of  their  wrongs  in  pathetic  and  startling  language. 
They  appealed  to  those  puissant  and  illustrious  chev- 
aliers to  prevent  the  perpetration  of  the  great  wrong 
which  was  now  impending  over  so  many  innocent  heads. 
''  Wait  not,"  they  said,  "  till  the  thunderbolt  has  fallen, 
till  the  deluge  has  overwhelmed  us,  till  the  fires  already 
blazing  have  laid  the  land  in  coals  and  ashes,  till  no 
other  course  be  possible  but  to  abandon  the  country  in 
its  desolation  to  foreign  barbarity.  Let  the  cause  of  the 
oppressed  come  to  your  ears.  So  shall  your  conscience 
become  a  shield  of  iron ;  so  shall  the  happiness  of  a 
whole  country  witness  before  the  angels  of  your  truth 
to  his  Majesty,  in  the  cause  of  his  true  grandeur  and 
glory,"  2 

These  stirring  appeals  to  an  order  of  which  Philip  was 
chief,  Viglius  chancellor,  Egmont,  Mansfeld,  Aerschot, 
Berlaymont,  and  others  chevaliers,  were  not  likely  to 
produce  much  effect.  The  city  could  rely  upon  no  as- 
sistance in  those  high  quarters. 

Meantime,  however,  the  bold  Brederode  was  attempt- 
ing a  very  extensive  diversion,  which,  if  successful, 
would  have  saved  Valenciennes  and  the  whole  country 
besides.  That  eccentric  personage,  during  the  autumn 
and  winter,  had  been  creating  disturbances  in  various 
parts  of  the  country.  Wlierever  he  happened  to  be 
established,  there  came  from  the  windows  of  his  apart- 
ments a  sound  of  revelry  and  uproar.  Suspicious  char- 
acters in  various  costumes  thronged  his  door  and  dogged 
his  footsteps.^    At  the  same  time  the  authorities  felt 

1  Ante,  p.  310. 

2  Remonstrance,  etc.,  ubi  sup. 

3  Bor,  iii.  147,  148. 


1567]  CONDUCT   OF  BEEDERODE  313 

themselves  obliged  to  treat  him  with  respect.  At  Horn 
he  had  entertained  many  of  the  leading  citizens  at  a 
great  banquet.  The  health  of  the  beggars  had  been 
drunk  in  mighty  potations,  and  their  shibboleth  had 
resounded  through  the  house.  In  the  midst  of  the  fes- 
tivities, Brederode  had  suspended  a  beggar's  medal 
around  the  neck  of  the  burgomaster,  who  had  consented 
to  be  his  guest  upon  that  occasion,  but  who  had  no 
intention  of  enrolling  himself  in  the  fraternities  of 
actual  or  political  mendicants.  The  excellent  magis- 
trate, however,  was  near  becoming  a  member  of  both. 
The  emblem  by  which  he  had  been  conspicuously 
adorned  proved  very  embarrassing  to  him  upon  his 
recovery  from  the  effects  of  his  orgies  with  the  "  great 
beggar,"  and  he  was  subsequently  punished  for  his  im- 
prudence by  the  confiscation  of  half  his  property.^ 

Early  in  January,  Brederode  had  stationed  himself  in 
his  city  of  Vianen.  There,  in  virtue  of  his  seigniorial 
rights,  he  had  removed  all  statues  and  other  popish 
emblems  from  the  churches,  performing  the  operation, 
however,  with  much  quietness  and  decorum.  He  had 
also  collected  many  disorderly  men-at-arms  in  this  city, 
and  had  strengthened  its  fortifications,  to  resist,  as  he 
said,  the  threatened  attacks  of  Duke  Eric  of  Brunswick 
and  his  German  mercenaries.^  A  printing-press  was 
established  in  the  place,  whence  satmcal  pamphlets, 
hymn-books,  and  other  pestiferous  productions  were 
constantly  issuing  to  the  annoyance  of  government.^ 

1  Velius  Hoorn,  Bl.  298 ;  cited  by  Wagenaer,  vi.  189. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  255-257.  Compare 
Bor,  iii.  147,  148 ;  Bentivoglio,  iii.  46. 

3  Bor,  ubi  sup.  Correspondanee  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii. 
328-331. 


314  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

Many  lawless  and  uproarious  individuals  enjoyed  the 
count's  hospitality.  All  the  dregs  and  filth  of  the  prov- 
inces, according  to  Dr.  Viglius,  were  accumulated  at 
Vianen  as  in  a  cesspool.^  Along  the  placid  banks  of  the 
Leek,  on  which  river  the  city  stands,  the  "  hydra  of  re- 
bellion "  2  lay  ever  coiled  and  threatening. 

Brederode  was  supposed  to  be  revolving  vast  schemes, 
both  political  and  military,  and  Margaret  of  Parma  was 
kept  in  continual  apprehension  by  the  bravado  of  this 
very  noisy  conspirator.  She  called  upon  William  of 
Orange,  as  usual,  for  assistance.  The  prince,  however, 
was  very  ill  disposed  to  come  to  her  relief.  An  extreme 
disgust  for  the  policy  of  the  government  already  began 
to  characterize  his  public  language.  In  the  autumn  and 
winter  he  had  done  all  that  man  could  do  for  the  safety 
of  the  monarch's  crown  and  for  the  people's  happiness. 
His  services  in  Antwerp  have  been  recorded.  As  soon  as 
he  could  tear  himself  from  that  city,  where  the  magis- 
trates and  all  classes  of  citizens  clung  to  him  as  to  their 
only  savior,  he  had  hastened  to  tranquillize  the  prov- 
inces of  Holland,  Zealand,  and  Utrecht.  He  had  made 
arrangements  in  the  principal  cities  there  upon  the  same 
basis  which  he  had  adopted  in  Antwerp,and  to  which  Mar- 
garet had  consented  in  August.  It  was  quite  out  of  the 
question  to  establish  order  without  permitting  the  re- 
formers, who  constituted  much  the  larger  portion  of 
the  population,  to  have  liberty  of  religious  exercises  at 
some  places,  not  consecrated,  within  the  cities. 

At  Amsterdam,  for  instance,  as  he  informed  the 
duchess,  there  were  swarms  of  unlearned,  barbarous 
people,  mariners  and  the  like,^  who  could  by  no  means 

1  Vigl.  ad  J.  Hopperum,  418-424.  2  Hsid.,  425. 

3  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  283,  284:  "Maron- 
niers  et  gens  indoetz,  barbares." 


1567]  OEANGE  IN  HOLLAND  315 

perceive  the  propriety  of  doing  their  preaching  in  the 
open  country,  seeing  that  the  open  country,  at  that  sea- 
son, was  quite  under  water.  ^  Margaret's  gracious  sug- 
gestion that  perhaps  something  might  be  done  with 
boats  was  also  considered  inadmissible.  "  I  know  not," 
said  Orange, ''  who  could  have  advised  your  Highness  to 
make  such  a  proposition."  ^  He  informed  her,  likewise, 
that  the  barbarous  mariners  had  a  clear  right  to  their 
preaching,  for  the  custom  had  already  been  established 
previously  to  the  August  treaty,  at  a  place  called  the 
"  Lastaadje,"  among  the  wharves.  "  In  the  name  of  God^ 
then,"  wrote  Margaret,  ^'  let  them  continue  to  preach  in 
the  Lastaadje."  ^  This  being  all  the  barbarians  wanted, 
an  Accord,  with  the  full  consent  of  the  regent,  was 
drawn  up  at  Amsterdam  and  the  other  northern  cities. 
The  Catholics  kept  churches  and  cathedrals,  but  in  the 
winter  season  the  greater  part  of  the  population  ob- 
tained permission  to  worship  God  upon  dry  land,  in 
warehouses  and  dockyards. 

Within  a  very  few  weeks,  however,  the  whole  arrange- 
ment was  coolly  canceled  by  the  duchess,  her  permission 
revoked,  and  peremptory  prohibition  of  all  preaching 
within  or  without  the  walls  proclaimed.*  The  govern- 
ment was  growing  stronger.  Had  not  Noircarmes  and 
Rassinghem  cut  to  pieces  three  or  four  thousand  of 
these  sectaries,  marching  to  battle  under  parsons,  lock- 
smiths, and  similar  chieftains  ?  Were  not  all  lovers  of 
good  government  ''erecting  their  heads  like  drome- 
daries "  ? 

It  may  easily  be  comprehended  that  the  prince  could 

1  Correspondanee  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  283,  284. 

2  Ibid. 

3  "  Au  nom  de  Dieu  qu'ils  ayent  leurs  presches  au  diet  Lastaige." 
—Ibid.,  ii.  296.  *  Ibid.,  ii.  351-353. 


316  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

not  with  complacency  permit  himself  to  be  thus  perpet- 
ually stultified  by  a  weak,  false,  and  imperious  woman. 
She  had  repeatedly  called  upon  him  when  she  was  ap- 
palled at  the  tempest  and  sinking  in  the  ocean,  and  she 
had  as  constantly  disavowed  his  deeds  and  reviled  his 
character  when  she  felt  herself  in  safety  again.  He 
had  tranquillized  the  old  Batavian  provinces,  where  the 
old  Batavian  spirit  still  lingered,  by  his  personal  in- 
fluence and  his  unwearied  exertions.  Men  of  all  ranks 
and  religions  were  grateful  for  his  labors.  The  re- 
formers had  not  gained  much,  but  they  were  satisfied. 
The  Catholics  retained  their  churches,  their  property, 
their  consideration.  The  states  of  Holland  had  voted 
him  fifty  thousand  florins  ^  as  an  acknowledgment  of  his 
efforts  in  restoring  peace.  He  had  refused  the  present. 
He  was  in  debt,  pressed  for  money,  but  he  did  not 
choose,  as  he  informed  Philip,  ''  that  men  should  think 
his  actions  governed  by  motives  of  avarice  or  particular 
interest,  instead  of  the  true  affection  which  he  bore  to 
his  Majesty's  service  and  the  good  of  the  comifry.^^'^ 
Nevertheless,  his  back  was  hardly  turned  before  all  his 
work  was  undone  by  the  regent. 

A  new  and  important  step  on  the  part  of  the  govern- 
ment had  now  placed  him  in  an  attitude  of  almost 
avowed  rebellion.  All  functionaries,  from  governors  of 
provinces  down  to  subalterns  in  the  army,  were  required 
to  take  a  new  oath  of  allegiance,  ''  novum  et  hactenus 
inusitatum  religionis  juramentum,"  ^  as  the  prince  char- 
acterized it,  which  was,  he  said,  quite  equal  to  the  In- 
quisition.    Every  man  who  bore  his  Majesty's  commis- 

1  Bor,  iii.  147.     Hoofd,  iv.  129. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  360-365. 

3  Archives  et  Correspondance,  iii.  29. 


1567]  A  NEW  OATH  317 

sion  was  ordered  solemnly  to  pledge  himseK  to  obey  the 
orders  of  government,  everywhere,  and  against  every 
person,  without  limitation  or  restriction.^  Count  Mans- 
feld,  now  "  factotum  at  Brussels,"  '^  had  taken  the  oath 
with  great  fervor.  So  had  Aerschot,  Berlaymont,  Meg- 
hen,  and,  after  a  little  wavering,  Egmont.^  Orange 
spumed  the  proposition.  He  had  taken  oaths  enough, 
which  he  had  never  broken,  nor  intended  now  to  break. 
He  was  ready  still  to  do  everything  conducive  to  the 
real  interest  of  the  monarch.  Who  dared  do  more  was 
no  true  servant  to  the  government,  no  true  lover  of  the 
country.  He  would  never  disgrace  himself  by  a  blind 
pledge,  through  which  he  might  be  constrained  to 
do  acts  detrimental,  in  his  opinion,  to  the  safety  of  the 
crown,  the  happiness  of  the  commonwealth,  and  his  own 
honor.  The  alternative  presented  he  willingly  em- 
braced.* He  renounced  all  his  offices,  and  desired  no 
longer  to  serve  a  government  whose  policy  he  did  not 
approve,  a  king  by  whom  he  was  suspected. 

His  resignation  was  not  accepted  by  the  duchess,  who 
still  made  efforts  to  retain  the  services  of  a  man  who 
was  necessary  to  her  administration.  She  begged  him, 
notwithstanding  the  purely  defensive  and  watchful  at- 
titude which  he  had  now  assumed,  to  take  measures  that 
Brederode  should  abandon  his  mischievous  courses. 
She  also  reproached  the  prince  with  having  furnished 
that   personage   with   artillery   for  his    fortifications. 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  iii.  26-31.  Correspondance 
de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  312,  313,  317-321,  416-418. 

2  Expression  of  Orange,  Archives  et  Correspondance,  iii.  40. 

3  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  312,  313.  Strada, 
vi.  264. 

*  Renom  de  France  MS.,  i.  c.  39. 


318  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

Orange  answered,  somewhat  contemptuously,  that  he 
was  not  Brederode's  keeper,  and  had  no  occasion  to 
meddle  with  his  affairs.^  He  had  given  him  three  small 
field-pieces,  promised  long  ago ;  not  that  he  mentioned 
that  circumstance  as  an  excuse  for  the  donation. 
"  Thank  God,"  said  he,  "  we  have  always  had  the  liberty 
in  this  country  of  making  to  friends  or  relatives  wliat 
presents  we  Hked,  and  methinks  that  things  have  come 
to  a  pretty  pass  when  such  trifles  are  scrutinized."  ^ 
Certainly,  as  suzerain  of  Vianen,  and  threatened  with 
invasion  in  his  seigniorial  rights,  the  count  might  think 
himself  justified  in  strengthening  the  bulwarks  of  his 
little  stronghold,  and  the  prince  could  hardly  be  deemed 
very  seriously  to  endanger  the  safety  of  the  crown  by 
the  insignificant  present  which  had  annoyed  the  regent. 
It  is  not  so  agreeable  to  contemplate  the  apparent  in- 
timacy which  the  prince  accorded  to  so  disreputable  a 
character ;  but  Orange  was  now  in  hostility  to  the  gov- 
ernment, was  convinced,  by  evidence  whose  accuracy 
time  was  most  signally  to  establish,  that  his  own  head, 
as  well  as  many  others,  were  already  doomed  to  the 
block,  while  the  whole  country  was  devoted  to  abject 
servitude,  and  he  was  therefore  disposed  to  look  with 
more  indulgence  upon  the  follies  of  those  who  were  en- 
deavoring, however  weakly  and  insanely,  to  avert  the 
horrors  which  he  foresaw.  The  time  for  reasoning 
had  passed.  All  that  true  wisdom  and  practical  states- 
manship could  suggest,  he  had  already  placed  at  the 
disposal  of  a  woman  who  stabbed  him  in  the  back  even 
while  she  leaned  upon  his  arm — of  a  king  who  had  al- 
ready drawn  his  death-warrant,  while  reproaching  his 

1  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  339,  340. 

2  Ibid. 


1567]  BEEDERODE'S  PETITION  819 

"  cousin  of  Orange  "  for  want  of  confidence  in  the  royal 
friendship.  Was  he  now  to  attempt  the  subjugation  of 
his  country  by  interfering  with  the  proceedings  of 
men  whom  he  had  no  power  to  command,  and  who,  at 
least,  were  attempting  to  oppose  tyranny  ?  Even  if  he 
should  do  so  he  was  perfectly  aware  of  the  reward  re- 
served for  his  loyalty.  He  liked  not  such  honors  as 
he  foresaw  for  all  those  who  had  ever  interposed  be- 
tween the  monarch  and  his  vengeance.  For  himself,  he 
had  the  liberation  of  a  country,  the  foundation  of  a  free 
commonwealth,  to  achieve.  There  was  much  work  for 
those  hands  before  he  should  fall  a  victim  to  the  crowned 
assassin. 

Early  in  February,  Brederode,  Hoogstraaten,  Horn, 
and  some  other  gentlemen  visited  the  prince  at  Breda.^ 
Here  it  is  supposed  the  advice  of  Orange  was  asked 
concerning  the  new  movement  contemplated  by  Brede- 
rode. He  was  bent  upon  presenting  a  new  petition  to 
the  duchess  with  great  solemnity.  There  is  no  evidence 
to  show  that  the  prince  approved  the  step,  which  must 
have  seemed  to  him  superfluous,  if  not  puerile.  He 
probably  regarded  the  matter  with  indifference.  Bre- 
derode, however,  who  was  fond  of  making  demonstra- 
tions, and  thought  himself  endowed  with  a  genius  for 
such  work,  wrote  to  the  regent  for  letters  of  safe-con- 
duct that  he  might  come  to  Brussels  with  his  petition. 
The  passports  were  contemptuously  refused.  He  then 
came  to  Antwerp,  from  which  city  he  forwarded  the 
document  to  Brussels  in  a  letter. 

By  this  new  Request  the  exercise  of  the  Reformed  re- 
ligion was  claimed  as  a  right,  while  the  duchess  was 
summoned  to  disband  the  forces  which  she  had  been 

1  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  404  sqq. 


320  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

collecting,  and  to  maintain  in  good  faith  the  August 
treaty.!  These  claims  were  somewhat  bolder  than  those 
of  the  previous  April,  although  the  liberal  party  was 
much  weaker  and  the  confederacy  entirely  disbanded. 
Brederode,  no  doubt,  thought  it  good  generalship  to 
throw  the  last  loaf  of  bread  into  the  enemy's  camp  be- 
fore the  city  should  surrender.  His  haughty  tone  was 
at  once  taken  down  by  Margaret  of  Parma.  She  won- 
dered, she  said,  what  manner  of  nobles  these  were,  who, 
after  requesting,  a  year  before,  to  be  saved  only  from 
the  Inquisition,  now  presumed  to  talk  about  preaching 
in  the  cities.  The  concessions  of  August  had  always 
been  odious,  and  were  now  canceled.  "  As  for  you  and 
your  accomplices,"  she  continued  to  the  count,  "you 
will  do  weU  to  go  to  your  homes  at  once  without  med- 
dling with  public  affairs,  for  in  case  of  disobedience  I 
shall  deal  with  you  as  I  shall  deem  expedient."  ^ 

Brederode,  not  easily  abashed,  disregarded  the  advice, 
and  continued  in  Antwerp.  Here,  accepting  the  answer 
of  the  regent  as  a  formal  declaration  of  hostilities,  he 
busied  himself  in  levying  troops  in  and  about  the  city.^ 

Orange  had  returned  to  Antwerp  early  in  February. 
During  his  absence  Hoogstraaten  had  acted  as  governor, 
at  the  instance  of  the  prince  and  of  the  regent.  During 
the  winter  that  nobleman,  who  was  very  young  and 
very  fiery,  had  carried  matters  with  a  high  hand  when- 
ever there  had  been  the  least  attempt  at  sedition.  Lib- 
eral in  principles,  and  the  devoted  friend  of  Orange,  he 
was  disposed,  however,  to  prove  that  the  champions  of 

^  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  404  sqq.  Bor,  iii. 
149-151. 

2  Bor,  iii.  149-151.     Archives  et  Correspondance,  iii.  31. 
'  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  410,  411. 


1567]  THE  PRINCE  IN  ANTWERP  321 

religious  liberty  were  not  the  patrons  of  sedition.  A 
riot  occurring  in  the  cathedral,  where  a  violent  mob 
were  engaged  in  defacing  whatever  was  left  to  deface  in 
that  church,  and  in  heaping  insults  on  the  papists  at 
their  worship,  the  little  count,  who,  says  a  Catholic  con- 
temporary, '^  had  the  courage  of  a  lion,"  dashed  in  among 
them,  sword  in  hand,  killed  three  upon  the  spot,  and, 
aided  by  his  followers,  succeeded  in  slaying,  wounding, 
or  capturing  all  the  resr.i  He  had  also  tracked  the 
ringleader  of  the  tumult  to  his  lodging,  where  he  had 
caused  him  to  be  arrested  at  midnight,  and  hanged  at 
once  in  his  shirt  without  any  form  of  trial.^  Such  rapid 
proceedings  little  resembled  the  calm  and  judicious 
moderation  of  Orange  upon  all  occasions,  but  they  cer- 
tainly might  have  sufficed  to  convince  Philip  that  aU 
antagonists  of  the  Inquisition  were  not  heretics  and  out- 
laws. Upon  the  arrival  of  the  prince  in  Antwerp,  it 
was  considered  advisable  that  Hoogstraaten  should  re- 
main associated  with  him  in  the  temporary  government 
of  the  city.^ 

During  the  month  of  February,  Brederode  remained 
in  Antwerp,  secretly  enrolling  troops.  It  was  probably 
his  intention — if  so  desultory  and  irresponsible  an  in- 
dividual could  be  said  to  have  an  intention— to  make  an 
attempt  upon  the  island  of  Walcheren.  If  such  im- 
portant cities  as  Flushing  and  Middelburg  could  be 
gained,  he  thought  it  possible  to  prevent  the  armed  in- 
vasion now  soon  expected  from  Spain.  Orange  had  sent 
an  officer  to  those  cities,  who  was  to  reconnoiter  their 
condition,  and  to  advise  them  against  receiving  a  garri- 
son from  government  without  his  authority.*    So  far  he 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  2  ibid.  s  Bor,  iii.  153. 

*  Gachard,  Preface  to  Correspondance  de  Gmllaume  le  Tacit., 

VOL.  11.-21 


322  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

connived  at  Brederode's  proceedings,  as  he  had  a  per- 
fect right  to  do,  for  Walcheren  was  within  what  had 
been  the  prince's  government,  and  he  had  no  disposition 
that  these  cities  should  share  the  fate  of  Tournay,  Va- 
lenciennes, Bois-le-Ihic,  and  other  towns  which  had  al- 
ready passed  or  were  passing  under  the  spears  of  foreign 
mercenaries. 

It  is  also  probable  that  he  did  not  take  any  special 
pains  to  check  the  enrolments  of  Brederode.  The  peace 
of  Antwerp  was  not  endangered,  and  to  the  preservation 
of  that  city  the  prince  seemed  now  to  limit  himself. 
He  was  hereditary  Burgrave  of  Antwerp,  but  officer  of 
Philip's  nevermore.  Despite  the  shrill  demands  of 
Duchess  Margaret,  therefore,  the  prince  did  not  take 
very  active  measures  by  which  the  crown  of  Philip 
might  be  secured.  He  perhaps  looked  upon  the  struggle 
almost  with  indifference.  Nevertheless,  he  issued  a 
formal  proclamation  by  which  the  count's  enlistments 
were  forbidden.  Van  der  Aa,  a  gentleman  who  had 
been  active  in  making  these  levies,  was  compelled  to 
leave  the  city.^  Brederode  was  already  gone  to  the 
north  to  busy  himself  with  further  enrolments.^ 

In  the  meantime  there  had  been  much  alarm  in 
Brussels.  Egmont,  who  omitted  no  opportunity  of 
manifesting  his  loyalty,  offered  to  throw  himself  at  once 
into  the  isle  of  Walcheren,  for  the  purpose  of  dislodging 
any  rebels  who  might  have  effected  an  entrance.^  He 
collected  accordingly  seven  or  eight  hundred  Walloon 
veterans,  at  his  disposal  in  Flanders,  in  the  little  port 

ii.  cxliv,  sqq.  Compare  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.,  iii.  48- 
50 ;  Bor,  iii.  l56 ;  Meteren,  ii.  45 ;  Hoofd,  iii.  120. 

1  Bor,  iii.  156.  2  ibid. 

3  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1567]  THOLOUSE  AT  AUSTRUWEEL  323 

of  Sas  de  Ghent,  prepared  at  once  to  execute  his  in- 
tention, '■'■  worthy,"  says  a  Catholic  writer,  "  of  his  well- 
known  courage  and  magnanimity."  ^  The  duchess  ex- 
pressed gratitude  for  the  count's  devotion  and  loyalty, 
/but  his  services  in  the  sequel  proved  unnecessary.  The 
rebels,  several  boat-loads  of  whom  had  been  cruising 
about  in  the  neighborhood  of  Flushing  during  the  early 
part  of  March,  had  been  refused  admittance  into  any  of 
the  ports  on  the  island.  They  therefore  sailed  up  the 
Schelde,  and  landed  at  a  little  village  called  Austruweel, 
at  the  distance  of  somewhat  more  than  a  mile  from 
Antwerp.2 

The  commander  of  the  expedition  was  Mamix  of 
Tholouse,  brother  to  Marnix  of  Sainte-Aldegonde.  This 
young  nobleman,  who  had  left  college  to  fight  for  the 
cause  of  religious  liberty,  was  possessed  of  fine  talents 
and  accomplishments,^  Like  his  illustrious  brother, 
he  was  already  a  sincere  convert  to  the  doctrines  of 
the  Reformed  Church.*  He  had  nothing,  however,  but 
courage  to  recommend  him  as  a  leader  in  a  military  ex- 
pedition. He  was  a  mere  boy,  utterly  without  experi- 
ence in  the  field.^  His  troops  were  raw  levies,  vagabonds, 
and  outlaws. 

Such  as  it  was,  however,  his  army  was  soon  posted  at 
Austruweel,  in  a  convenient  position  and  with  consider- 
able judgment.  He  had  the  Schelde  and  its  dikes  in  his 
rear,  on  his  right  and  left  the  dikes  and  the  village.  In 
front  he  threw  up  a  breastwork  and  sank  a  trench.^ 
Here,  then,  was  set  up  the  standard  of  rebellion,  and 
hither  flocked  daily  many  malcontents  from  the  country 

1  Pontiis  Payen  MS. 

2  Bor,  iii.  156.     Hoofd,  iii.  120.     Meteren,  ii.  45. 

3  Pontus  Payen  MS.  *  Ibid.  «  Ibid.  «  Ibid, 


324  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

round.  Within  a  few  days  three  thousand  men  were  in 
his  camp.  On  the  other  hand,  Brederode  was  busy  in 
Holland,  and  boasted  of  taking  the  field  ere  long  with 
six  thousand  soldiers  at  the  very  least.  Together  they 
would  march  to  the  relief  of  Valenciennes,  and  dictate 
peace,  in  Brussels.^ 

It  was  obvious  that  this  matter  could  not  be  allowed 
to  go  on.  The  duchess,  with  some  trepidation,  accepted 
the  offer  made  by  Philip  de  Lannoy,  Seigneur  de  Beau- 
voir,  commander  of  her  body-guard  in  Brussels,  to 
destroy  this  nest  of  rebels  without  delay.^  Half  the 
whole  number  of  these  soldiers  was  placed  at  his  dis- 
position, and  Egmont  supplied  De  Beauvoir  with  four 
hundred  of  his  veteran  Walloons.^ 

With  a  force  numbering  only  eight  hundred,  but  aU 
picked  men,  the  intrepid  officer  undertook  his  enterprise 
with  great  despatch  and  secrecy.  Upon  the  12th  March 
the  whole  troop  was  sent  off  in  small  parties,  to  avoid 
suspicion,  and  armed  only  with  sword  and  dagger. 
Their  helmets,  bucklers,  harquebuses,  corselets,  spears, 
standards,  and  drums  were  delivered  to  their  officers, 
by  whom  they  were  conveyed  noiselessly  to  the  place  of 
rendezvous.*  Before  daybreak,  upon  the  following 
morning,  De  Beauvoir  met  his  soldiers  at  the  abbey  of 
St.  Bernard,  within  a  league  of  Antwerp.  Here  he 
gave  them  their  arms,  supplied  them  with  refreshments, 
and  made  them  a  brief  speech.^  He  instructed  them 
that  they  were  to  advance,  with  furled  banners  and 
without  beat  of  drum,  till  within  sight  of  the  enemy, 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  2  ibid.  3  ibid. 

*  Ibid.  Compare  Gachard,  Preface  to  Guillamne  le  Tacit.,  ii. 
cxxiv.-cxxx. 

5  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1567]  DE  BEAUVOIR  TAKES  THE  FIELD  325 

that  the  foremost  section  was  to  deliver  its  fire,  retreat 
to  the  rear,  and  load,  to  be  followed  by  the  next,  which 
was  to  do  the  same,  and,  above  aU,  that  not  a  harquebus 
should  be  discharged  till  the  faces  of  the  enemy  could 
be  distinguished.! 

The  troop  started.  After  a  few  minutes'  march  they 
were  in  full  sight  of  Austruweel.  They  then  displayed 
their  flags  and  advanced  upon  the  fort  with  loud  huzzas. 
Tholouse  was  as  much  taken  by  surprise  as  if  they  had 
suddenly  emerged  from  the  bowels  of  the  earth.^  He 
had  been  informed  that  the  government  at  Brussels  was 
in  extreme  trepidation.  When  he  first  heard  the  ad- 
vancing trumpets  and  sudden  shouts,  he  thought  it  a 
detachment  of  Brederode's  promised  force.  The  cross 
on  the  banners^  soon  undeceived  him.  Nevertheless, 
''like  a  brave  and  generous  young  gentleman  as  he 
was,"  *  he  lost  no  time  in  drawing  up  his  men  for  action, 
implored  them  to  defend  their  breastworks,  which  were 
impregnable  against  so  small  a  force,  and  instructed 
them  to  wait  patiently  with  their  fire  till  the  enemy 
were  near  enough  to  be  marked. 

These  orders  were  disobeyed.  The  "  young  scholar," 
as  De  Beauvoir  had  designated  him,  had  no  power  to 
infuse  his  own  spirit  into  his  rabble  rout  of  followers. 
They  were  already  panic-struck  by  the  unexpected  ap- 
pearance of  the  enemy.  The  Catholics  came  on  with 
the  coolness  of  veterans,  taking  as  deliberate  aim  as  if 
it  had  been  they,  not  their  enemies,  who  were  behind 
breastworks.     The  troops  of  Tholouse  fired  wUdly,  pre- 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  Compare  the  letters  of  De  Beauvoir,  pub- 
lished by  M.  Gachard,  Preface,  etc.,  ubi  supra. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS.  3  Letter  of  De  Beauvoir,  ubi  sup. 
*  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


326  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

cipitately,  quite  over  the  heads  of  the  assailants.  Many 
of  the  defenders  were  slain  as  fast  as  they  showed  them- 
selves above  their  bulwarks.  The  ditch  was  crossed, 
the  breastworks  carried  at  a  single  determined  charge. 
The  rebels  made  little  resistance,  but  fled  as  soon  as  the 
enemy  entered  their  fort.  It  was  a  hunt,  not  a  battle. 
Hundreds  were  stretched  dead  in  the  camp ;  hundreds 
were  driven  into  the  Schelde  ;  six  or  eight  hundred  took 
refuge  in  a  farm-house ;  but  De  Beauvoir's  men  set  fire 
to  the  building,  and  every  rebel  who  had  entered  it  was 
burned  alive  or  shot.  No  quarter  was  given.  Hardly 
a  man  of  the  three  thousand  who  had  held  the  fort 
escaped.  The  body  of  Tholouse  was  cut  into  a  hun- 
dred pieces.^  The  Seigneur  de  Beauvoir  had  reason, 
in  the  brief  letter  which  gave  an  account  of  this  exploit, 
to  assure  her  Highness  that  there  were  ^'  some  very 
valiant  fellows  in  his  little  troop."  Certainly  they  had 
accomplished  the  enterprise  intrusted  to  them  with 
promptness,  neatness,  and  entire  success.  Of  the  great 
rebellious  gathering,  which  every  day  had  seemed  to  grow 
more  formidable,  not  a  vestige  was  left.^ 

This  bloody  drama  had  been  enacted  in  full  sight  of 
Antwerp.  The  fight  had  lasted  from  daybreak  till  ten 
o'clock  in  the  forenoon,  during  the  whole  of  which 
period  the  city  ramparts  looking  toward  Austruweel, 
the  roofs  of  houses,  the  towers  of  churches,  had  been 
swarming  with  eager  spectators.  The  sound  of  drum 
and  trumpet,  the  rattle  of  musketry,  the  shouts  of  vic- 

1  "Le  S"^  de  Tholouze  qui  at  est6  liaeli6  en  cent  pieces,  non  ob- 
stant  I'ofifre  de  deux  mil  escus  qu'il  faisoit  pour  ranson,"  etc.— Let- 
ter of  De  Beauvoir  in  Gaehard,  ubi  sup. 

"  Gachard,  Preface,  ubi  sup.  Pontus  Payen  MS.  Compare  Bor, 
iii.  157 ;  Meteren,  f .  45 ;  Strada,  vi.  250,  251. 


1567]  THE  ANTWERP   TUMULT  327 

tory,  the  despairing  cries  of  the  vanquished,  were  heard 
by  thousands  who  deeply  sympathized  with  the  rebels 
thus  enduring  so  sanguinary  a  chastisement.^  In  Ant- 
werp there  were  forty  thousand  people  opposed  to  the 
Church  of  Rome.^  Of  this  number  the  greater  propor- 
tion were  Calvinists,  and  of  these  Calvinists  there  were 
thousands  looking  down  from  the  battlements  upon  the 
disastrous  fight. 

The  excitement  soon  became  uncontrollable.  Before 
ten  o'clock  vast  numbers  of  sectaries  came  pouring 
toward  the  Red  Gate,  which  afforded  the  readiest  egress 
to  the  scene  of  action,  the  drawbridge  of  the  Austruweel 
Gate  having  been  destroyed  the  night  before  by  com- 
mand of  Orange.^  They  came  from  every  street  and 
alley  of  the  city.  Some  were  armed  with  lance,  pike,  or 
harquebus ;  some  bore  sledge-hammers ;  others  had  the 
partizans,  battle-axes,  and  huge  two-handed  swords  of 
the  previous  century.*  All  were  determined  upon  issu- 
ing forth  to  the  rescue  of  their  friends  in  the  fields  out- 
side the  town.  The  wife  of  Tholouse,  not  yet  aware  of 
her  husband's  death,  although  his  defeat  was  obvious, 
flew  from  street  to  street,  calling  upon  the  Calvinists  to 
save  or  to  avenge  their  perishing  brethren.^ 

A  terrible  tumult  prevailed.  Ten  thousand  men  were 
already  up  and  in  arms.  It  was  then  that  the  Prince 
of  Orange,  who  was  sometimes  described  by  his  enemies 
as  timid  and  pusillanimous  by  nature,  showed  the  mettle 
he  was  made  of.  His  sense  of  duty  no  longer  bade  him 
defend  the  crown  of  Philip,— which  thenceforth  was  to 

1  Strada,  Bor,  Meteren,  ubi  supra. 

3  Letter  of  Sir  T.  Gresham  in  Burgon,  ii.  195. 

3  Bor,  iii.  157.     Hoofd,  iii.  ]21. 

*  Pontus  Payen  MS.  ^  strada,  vi.  252. 


328  THE  EISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

be  intrusted  to  the  hirelings  of  the  Inquisition,— but  the 
vast  population  of  Antwerp,  the  women,  the  children, 
and  the  enormous  wealth  of  the  richest  city  in  the  world 
had  been  confided  to  his  care,  and  he  had  accepted  the 
responsibility.  Mounting  his  horse,  he  made  his  appear- 
ance instantly  at  the  Red  Gate,  before  as  formidable  a 
mob  as  man  has  ever  faced.  ^  He  came  there  almost 
alone,  without  guards.  Hoogstraaten  arrived  soon  after- 
ward with  the  same  intention.  The  prince  was  re- 
ceived with  howls  of  execration.  A  thousand  hoarse 
voices  called  him  the  pope's  servant,  minister  of  Anti- 
christ, and  lavished  upon  him  many  more  epithets  of  the 
same  nature.^  His  life  was  in  imminent  danger.  A 
furious  clothier  leveled  a  harquebus  full  at  his  breast. 
"  Die,  treacherous  villain,"  he  cried,  "  thou  who  art  the 
cause  that  our  brethren  have  perished  thus  miserably 
in  yonder  field !  "  ^  The  loaded  weapon  was  struck  away 
by  another  hand  in  the  crowd,  while  the  prince,  neither 
daunted  by  the  ferocious  demonstrations  against  his 
life,  nor  enraged  by  the  virulent  abuse  to  which  he  was 
subjected,  continued  tranquilly,  earnestly,  imperatively 
to  address  the  crowd.  William  of  Orange  had  that  in 
his  face  and  tongue  ^'  which  men  willingly  call  master 
—authority."  With  what  other  talisman  could  he, 
without  violence  and  without  soldiers,  have  quelled 
even  for  a  moment  ten  thousand  furious  Calvinists, 
armed,  enraged  against  his  person,  and  thirsting  for 
vengeance  on  Catholics?  The  postern  of  the  Red  Gate 
had  already  been  broken  through  before  Orange  and 
his  colleague,  Hoogstraaten,  had  arrived.     The  most 

1  Bor,  iii.  157.     Hoofd,  iii.  121.     Compare  Strada,  vi.  252,  253. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

3  Bor,  iii.  157.     Hoofd,  iii.  121. 


1567]  A  RASH  SORTIE  329 

excited  of  tlie  Calvinists  were  preparing  to  rush  forth 
upon  the  enemy  at  Austruweel.  The  prince,  after  he  had 
gained  the  ear  of  the  multitude,  urged  that  the  battle 
was  now  over,  that  the  reformers  were  entirely  cut  to 
pieces,  the  enemy  retiring,  and  that  a  disorderly  and  ill- 
armed  mob  would  be  unable  to  retrieve  the  fortunes  of 
the  day.  Many  were  persuaded  to  abandon  the  design. 
Five  hundred  of  the  most  violent,  however,  insisted 
upon  leaving  the  gates,  and  the  governors,  distinctly 
warning  these  zealots  that  their  blood  must  be  upon 
their  own  heads,  reluctantly  permitted  that  number  to 
issue  from  the  city.  The  rest  of  the  mob,  not  appeased, 
but  uncertain,  and  disposed  to  take  vengeance  upon  the 
Catholics  within  the  walls  for  the  disaster  which  had 
been  occurring  without,  thronged  tumultuously  to  the 
long,  wide  street  called  the  Mere,  situate  in  the  very 
heart  of  the  city.^ 

Meantime  the  ardor  of  those  who  had  sallied  from 
the  gates  grew  sensibly  cooler  when  they  found  them- 
selves in  the  open  fields.  De  Beauvoir,  whose  men, 
after  the  victory,  had  scattered  in  pursuit  of  the  fugi- 
tives, now  heard  the  tumult  in  the  city.  Suspecting 
an  attack,  he  rallied  his  compact  little  army  again  for  a 
fresh  encounter.  The  last  of  the  vanquished  Tholous- 
ians  who  had  been  captured,  more  fortunate  than  their 
predecessors,  had  been  spared  for  ransom.  There  were 
three  hundred  of  them— rather  a  dangerous  number  of 
prisoners  for  a  force  of  eight  hundred,  who  were  just 
going  into  another  battle.  De  Beauvoir  commanded 
his  soldiers,  therefore,  to  shoot  them  all.^    This  order 

1  Bor,  iii,  157  sqq.    Pontus  Payen  MS.    Letter  of  Sir  T.  Gresham. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. :  "  Leur  commanda  de  tuer  sur  le  champ 
tous  leurs  prisonniers."  "  Qui  fust  aussitdt  execute  que  commande." 


330  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

having  been  accomplished,  the  Catholics  marched 
toward  Antwerp,  drums  beating,  colors  flying.  The 
five  hundred  Calvinists,  not  liking  their  appearance, 
and  being  in  reality  outnumbered,  retreated  within  the 
gates  as  hastily  as  they  had  just  issued  from  them.  De 
Beauvoir  advanced  close  to  the  city  moat,  on  the  margin 
of  which  he  planted  the  banners  of  the  unfortunate 
Tholouse,  and  sounded  a  trumpet  of  defiance.  Finding 
that  the  citizens  had  apparently  no  stomach  for  the 
fight,  he  removed  his  trophies  and  took  his  departure.^ 
On  the  other  hand,  the  tumult  within  the  walls  had 
again  increased.  The  Calvinists  had  been  collecting  in 
great  numbers  upon  the  Mere.  This  was  a  large  and 
splendid  thoroughfare,  rather  an  oblong  market-place 
than  a  street,  filled  with  stately  buildings,  and  commu- 
nicating by  various  cross-streets  with  the  Exchange  and 
with  many  other  public  edifices.  By  an  early  hour  in 
the  afternoon  twelve  or  fifteen  thousand  Calvinists,^  all 
armed  and  fighting  men,  had  assembled  upon  the  place. 
They  had  barricaded  the  whole  precinct  with  pavements 
and  upturned  wagons.  They  had  already  broken  into 
the  arsenal  and  obtained  many  field-pieces,  which  were 
planted  at  the  entrance  of  every  street  and  byway. 
They  had  stormed  the  city  jail  and  liberated  the  pris- 
oners, all  of  whom,  grateful  and  ferocious,  came  to  swell 
the  numbers  who  defended  the  stronghold  on  the  Mere. 
A  tremendous  mischief  was  afoot.  Threats  of  pillaging 
the  churches  and  the  houses  of  the  Catholics,  of  sacking 
the  whole  opulent  city,  were  distinctly  heard  among 
this  powerful  mob,  excited  by  religious  enthusiasm,  but 
containing  within  one  great  heterogeneous  mass  the 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  Correspoudance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  226,  227. 


1567]  HEEOIC  DIPLOMACY  331 

elements  of  every  crime  which  humanity  can  commit. 
The  alarm  throughout  the  city  was  indescribable.  The 
cries  of  women  and  children,  as  they  remained  in 
trembling  expectation  of  what  the  next  hour  might 
bring  forth,  were,  said  one  who  heard  them,  "  enough  to 
soften  the  hardest  hearts."  ^ 

Nevertheless,  the  diligence  and  courage  of  the  prince 
kept  pace  with  the  insurrection.  He  had  caused  the 
eight  companies  of  guards  enrolled  in  September  to  be 
mustered  upon  the  square  in  front  of  the  city  hall  for 
the  protection  of  that  building  and  of  the  magistracy. 
He  had  summoned  the  senate  of  the  city,  the  board  of 
ancients,  the  deans  of  gilds,  the  ward-masters,  to  con- 
sult with  him  at  the  council-room.  At  the  peril  of  his 
life  he  had  again  gone  before  the  angry  mob  in  the 
Mere,  advancing  against  their  cannon  and  their  outcries, 
and  compelling  them  to  appoint  eight  deputies  to  treat 
with  him  and  the  magistrates  at  the  town  hall.  This 
done,  quickly  but  deliberately  he  had  drawn  up  six 
articles,  to  which  those  deputies  gave  their  assent,  and 
in  which  the  city  government  cordially  united.  These 
articles  provided  that  the  keys  of  the  city  should  remain 
in  the  possession  of  the  prince  and  of  Hoogstraaten, 
that  the  watch  should  be  held  by  burghers  and  soldiers 
together,  that  the  magistrates  should  permit  the  en- 
trance of  no  garrison,  and  that  the  citizens  should  be 
intrusted  with  the  care  of  the  charters,  especially  with 
that  of  the  ''  joyful  entrance."  2 

These  arrangements,  when  laid  before  the  assembly 

1  Bor  (iii.  159),  who  has  incorporated  into  his  work  the  "  justifi- 
cation "  published  contemporaneously  by  the  magistracy  of  Ant- 
werp. 

2  Ibid.,  iii.  157. 


332  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

at  the  Mere  by  their  deputies,  were  not  received  with 
favor.  The  Calvinists  demanded  the  keys  of  the  city. 
They  did  not  choose  to  be  locked  up  at  the  mercy  of 
any  man.  They  had  ah-eady  threatened  to  blow  the  city 
hall  into  the  air  if  the  keys  were  not  delivered  to  them.* 
They  claimed  that  burghers,  without  distinction  of  re- 
ligion, instead  of  mercenary  troops,  should  be  allowed 
to  guard  the  market-place  in  front  of  the  town  hall. 

It  was  now  nightfall,  and  no  definite  arrangement 
had  been  concluded.  Nevertheless,  a  temporary  truce 
was  made,  by  means  of  a  concession  as  to  the  guard. 
It  was  agreed  that  the  burghers,  Calvinists  and  Lu- 
therans as  well  as  Catholics,  should  be  employed  to 
protect  the  city.  By  subtlety,  however,  the  Calvinists 
detailed  for  that  service  were  posted,  not  in  the  town- 
house  square,  but  on  the  ramparts  and  at  the  gates.^ 

A  night  of  dreadful  expectation  was  passed.  The 
army  of  fifteen  thousand  mutineers  remained  encamped 
and  barricaded  on  the  Mere,  with  guns  loaded  and  artil- 
lery pointed.  Fierce  cries  of  '■'■  Long  live  the  beggars !  " 
"  Down  with  the  papists !  "  and  other  significant  watch- 
words, were  heard  all  night  long,  but  no  more  serious 
outbreak  occurred.^ 

During  the  whole  of  the  following  day  the  Calvinists 
remained  in  their  encampment,  the  Catholics  and  the 
city  guardsmen  at  their  posts  near  the  city  hall.  The 
prince  was  occupied  in  the  council-chamber  from  morn- 
ing till  night,  with  the  municipal  authorities,  the  depu- 
ties of  "  the  religion,"  and  the  gild  ofiicers,  in  framing 
a  new  treaty  of  peace.    Toward  evening  fifteen  articles 

1  Letter  of  Sir  T.  Gresham,  Bor,  ubi  sup. 

2  Bor. 

5  Ibid,  ubi  sup.     Hoofd,  iii.  121  sqq. 


1567]  A  NEW  TREATY  OF  PEACE  333 

were  agreed  upon,  which  were  to  be  proposed  forthwith 
to  the  insurgents,  and  in  case  of  non-acceptance  to  be 
enforced.  The  arrangement  pro\'ided  that  there  should 
be  no  garrison ;  that  the  September  contracts  permitting 
the  Reformed  worship  at  certain  places  within  the  city 
should  be  maintained;  that  men  of  different  parties 
should  refrain  from  mutual  insults ;  that  the  two  gov- 
ernors, the  prince  and  Hoogstraaten,  should  keep  the 
keys ;  that  the  city  should  be  guarded  by  both  soldiers 
and  citizens,  without  distinction  of  religious  creed ;  that 
a  band  of  four  hundred  cavalry  and  a  small  flotilla  of 
vessels  of  war  should  be  maintained  for  the  defense  of 
the  place,  and  that  the  expenses  to  be  incurred  should 
be  levied  upon  all  classes,  clerical  and  lay,  Catholic  and 
Reformed,  without  any  exception.^ 

It  had  been  intended  that  the  governors,  accompanied 
by  the  magistrates,  should  forthwith  proceed  to  the 
Mere,  for  the  purpose  of  laying  these  terms  before  the 
insurgents.  Night  had,  however,  already  arrived,  and 
it  was  understood  that  the  ill  temper  of  the  Calvinists 
had  rather  increased  than  diminished,  so  that  it  was 
doubtful  whether  the  arrangement  would  be  accepted. 
It  was  therefore  necessary  to  await  the  issue  of  another 
day,  rather  than  to  provoke  a  night  battle  in  the 
streets.2 

During  the  night  the  prince  labored  incessantly  to 
provide  against  the  dangers  of  the  morrow.  The  Cal- 
vinists had  fiercely  expressed  their  disinclination  to  any 
reasonable  arrangement.  They  had  threatened,  with- 
out further  pause,  to  plunder  the  religious  houses  and 
the  mansions  of  all  the  wealthy  Cathohcs,  and  to  drive 
every  papist  out  of  town.^  They  had  summoned  the 
1  Bor,  iii.  158.  2  Ibid,,  iii.  158b.  s  n,id. 


334  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

Lutherans  to  join  with  them  in  their  revolt,  and  menaced 
them,  in  case  of  refusal,  with  the  same  fate  which 
awaited  the  Catholics.^  The  prince,  who  was  himself  a 
Lutheran,  not  entirely  free  from  the  universal  prejudice 
against  the  Calvinists,  whose  sect  he  afterward  em- 
braced, was  fully  aware  of  the  deplorable  fact  that  the 
enmity  at  that  day  between  Calvinists  and  Lutherans 
was  as  fierce  as  that  between  reformers  and  CathoUcs. 
He  now  made  use  of  this  feeling,  and  of  his  influence 
with  those  of  the  Augsburg  Confession,  to  save  the 
city.  During  the  night  he  had  interviews  with  the 
ministers  and  notable  members  of  the  Lutheran  churches, 
and  induced  them  to  form  an  alliance  upon  this  occasion 
with  the  Catholics  and  with  all  friends  of  order  against 
an  army  of  outlaws  who  were  threatening  to  burn  and 
sack  the  city.  The  Lutherans,  in  the  silence  of  night, 
took  arms  and  encamped,  to  the  number  of  three  or 
four  thousand,  upon  the  riverside,  in  the  neighborhood 
of  St.  Michael's  Cloister.  The  prince  also  sent  for  the 
deans  of  all  the  foreign  mercantile  associations,— Italian, 
Spanish,  Portuguese,  English,  Hanseatic,— engaged  their 
assistance  also  for  the  protection  of  the  city,  and  com- 
manded them  to  remain  in  their  armor  at  their  respec- 
tive factories,  ready  to  act  at  a  moment's  warning.  It 
was  agreed  that  they  should  be  informed  at  frequent 
intervals  as  to  the  progress  of  events.^ 

On  the  morning  of  the  15th  the  city  of  Antwerp 
presented  a  fearful  sight.  Three  distinct  armies  were 
arrayed  at  different  points  within  its  walls.  The  Cal- 
vinists, fiiteen  thousand  strong,  lay  in  their  encamp- 

1  Bor,  iii.  158". 

2  Ibid.,  iii.  158,  159.  Strada,  vi.  252,  253.  Hoofd,  iii.  120,  122. 
Letter  of  Sir  T.  Gresham. 


1567]  MASTERLY  COMBINATIONS  335 

ment  on  the  Mere ;  the  Lutherans,  armed,  and  eager  for 
action,  were  at  St.  Michael's;  the  Catholics  and  the 
regulars  of  the  city  guard  were  posted  on  the  square. 
Between  thirty-five  and  forty  thousand  men  were  up, 
according  to  the  most  moderate  computation,^  All 
parties  were  excited  and  eager  for  the  fray.  The 
fires  of  religious  hatred  burned  fiercely  in  every  breast. 
Many  malefactors  and  outlaws,  who  had  found  refuge 
in  the  course  of  recent  events  at  Antwerp,  were  in  the 
ranks  of  the  Calvinists,  profaning  a  sacred  cause,  and 
inspiring  a  fanatical  party  with  bloody  resolutions. 
Papists,  once  and  forever,  were  to  be  hunted  down, 
even  as  they  had  been  for  years  pursuing  reformers. 
Let  the  men  who  had  fed  fat  on  the  spoils  of  plundered 
Christians  be  dealt  with  in  like  fashion.  Let  their  homes 
be  sacked,  their  bodies  given  to  the  dogs— such  were 
the  cries  uttered  by  thousands  of  armed  men. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  Lutherans,  as  angry  and  as 
rich  as  the  Catholics,  saw  in  every  Calvinist  a  murderer 
and  a  robber.  They  thirsted  after  their  blood ;  for  the 
spirit  of  reKgious  frenzy,  the  characteristic  of  the  cen- 

1  The  government  estimate  as  to  the  numbers  of  the  armed 
Calvinists  alone  was  fourteen  thousand  (Correspondance  de  M. 
d'Autriche,  226,  227).  Sir  Thomas  Gresham  estimated  them  at 
ten  thousand  armed  and  fighting  men,  while  he  placed  the  total 
numbers  upon  both  sides  as  high  as  fifty  thousand.  "  So  that,  sir, 
by  credible  report,  there  rose  up  all  sorts  above  fyftie  thousand 
menne  very  well  armed."— Letter  of  March  17,  1567,  in  Burgon. 

The  Prince  of  Orange,  who  was  always  moderate  in  his  compu- 
tations on  such  occasions,  stated  the  whole  force  on  both  sides  at 
twenty-eight  thousand  only :  "  Dan  E.  L.  mogen  uns  vertrauen 
das  zu  baiden  seiten  in  die  aeht  und  zwantig  thausend  bewerter 
man  gewesen  seindt."— Letter  to  Landgrave  William,  Archives 
et  Correspondance,  iii.  59.  This  applies  exclusively  to  armed  and 
fighting  men. 


336  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

tury,  can  with  diificulty  be  comprehended  in  our  colder 
and  more  skeptical  age.  There  was  every  probability 
that  a  bloody  battle  was  to  be  fought  that  day  in  the 
streets  of  Antwerp— a  general  engagement,  in  the 
course  of  which,  whoever  might  be  the  victors,  the  city 
was  sure  to  be  delivered  over  to  fire,  sack,  and  outrage. 
Such  would  have  been  the  result,  according  to  the  con- 
current testimony  of  eye-witnesses  and  contemporary 
historians  of  every  country  and  creed,  but  for  the  cour- 
age and  wisdom  of  one  man.  William  of  Orange  knew 
what  would  be  the  consequence  of  a  battle,  pent  up 
within  the  walls  of  Antwerp.  He  foresaw  the  horrible 
havoc  which  was  to  be  expected,  the  desolation  which 
would  be  brought  to  every  hearth  in  the  city.  ''  Never 
were  men  so  desperate  and  so  willing  to  fight,"  ^  said 
Sir  Thomas  Gresham,  who  had  been  expecting  every 
hour  his  summons  to  share  in  the  conflict.  If  the  prince 
were  unable  that  morning  to  avert  the  impending  ca- 
lamity, no  other  power  under  heaven  could  save  Ant- 
werp from  destruction. 

The  articles  prepared  on  the  14th  had  been  already 
approved  by  those  who  represented  the  Catholic  and 
Lutheran  interests.  They  were  read  early  in  the  morn- 
ing to  the  troops  assembled  on  the  square  and  at  St. 
Michael's,  and  received  with  hearty  cheers.^  It  was 
now  necessary  that  the  Calvinists  should  accept  them, 
or  that  the  quarrel  should  be  fought  out  at  once.  At 
ten  o'clock,  William  of  Orange,  attended  by  his  col- 
league, Hoogstraaten,  together  with  a  committee  of  the 
municipal  authorities,  and  followed  by  a  hundred 
troopers,  rode  to  the  Mere.      They  wore  red  scarfs 

1  Letter  in  Burgon,  17th  March. 

2  Bor.     Letter  of  Sir  T.  Gresham. 


1567]  THE  CRISIS  337 

over  their  armor/  as  symbols  by  which  all  those  who 
had  united  to  put  down  the  insurrection  were  distin- 
guished. The  fifteen  thousand  Calvinists,  fierce  and 
disorderly  as  ever,  maintained  a  threatening  aspect. 
Nevertheless,  the  prince  was  allowed  to  ride  into  the 
midst  of  the  square.  The  articles  were  then  read  aloud 
by  his  command,  after  which,  with  great  composure,  he 
made  a  few  observations.  He  pointed  out  that  the 
arrangement  offered  them  was  founded  upon  the  Sep- 
tember concessions,  that  the  right  of  worship  was  con- 
ceded, that  the  foreign  garrison  was  forbidden,  and  that 
nothing  further  could  be  justly  demanded  or  honorably 
admitted.  He  told  them  that  a  struggle  upon  their  part 
would  be  hopeless,  for  the  Catholics  and  Lutherans, 
who  were  all  agreed  as  to  the  justice  of  the  treaty,  out- 
numbered them  by  nearly  two  to  one.  He  therefore 
most  earnestly  and  affectionately  adjured  them  to  testify 
their  acceptance  to  the  peace  offered  by  repeating  the 
words  with  which  he  should  conclude.  Then,  with  a 
fii*m  voice,  the  prince  exclaimed,  '^  God  save  the  King !  " 
It  was  the  last  time  that  those  words  were  ever  heard 
from  the  lips  of  the  man  already  proscribed  by  Philip. 
The  crowd  of  Calvinists  hesitated  an  instant,  and  then, 
unable  to  resist  the  tranquil  influence,  convinced  by  his 
reasonable  language,  they  raised  one  tremendous  shout 
of  "  Vive  le  Roi !  " 

The  deed  was  done,  the  peace  accepted,  the  dreadful 
battle  averted,  Antwerp  saved.  The  deputies  of  the 
Calvinists  now  formally  accepted  and  signed  the  articles. 
Kind  words  were  exchanged  among  the  various  classes 
of  fellow-citizens  who  but  an  hour  before  had  been 
thirsting  for  each  other's  blood,  the  artillery  and  other 

1  Bor. 

VOL.  n.  — 22 


338  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

weapons  of  war  were  restored  to  the  arsenals,  Calvinists, 
Lutherans,  and  Catholics  all  laid  down  their  arms,  and 
the  city,  by  three  o'clock,  was  entirely  quiet.  Fifty 
thousand  armed  men  had  been  up,  according  to  some 
estimates,  yet,  after  three  days  of  dreadful  expectation, 
not  a  single  person  had  been  injured,  and  the  tumult 
was  now  appeased.^ 

The  prince  had,  in  truth,  used  the  mutual  animosity 
of  Protestant  sects  to  a  good  purpose,  averting  blood- 
shed by  the  very  weapons  with  which  the  battle  was  to 
have  been  waged.  Had  it  been  possible  for  a  man  like 
William  the  Silent  to  occupy  the  throne  where  Philip 
the  Prudent  sat,  how  different  might  have  been  the  his- 
tory of  Spain  and  the  fate  of  the  Netherlands !  Gresham 
was  right,  however,  in  his  conjecture  that  the  regent 
and  court  would  not  ''take  the  business  weU."  Mar- 
garet of  Parma  was  incapable  of  comprehending  such  a 
mind  as  that  of  Orange,  or  of  appreciating  its  efforts. 
She  was  surrounded  by  unscrupulous  and  mercenary 
soldiers,  who  hailed  the  coming  civil  war  as  the  most 
profitable  of  speculations.  "Factotum"  Mansfeld,  the 
Counts  Aremberg  and  Meghen,  the  Duke  of  Aerschot, 
the  sanguinary  Noircarmes,  were  already  counting  their 
share  in  the  coming  confiscations.  In  the  internecine 
conflict  approaching,  there  would  be  gold  for  the  gather- 
ing, even  if  no  honorable  laurels  would  wi*eathe  their 
swords.  ''  Meghen  with  his  regiment  is  desolating  the 
country,"  wrote  William  of  Orange  to  the  Landgrave  of 
Hesse,  ''  and  reducing  many  people  to  poverty.  Arem- 
berg is  doing  the  same  in  Friesland.  They  are  only 
thinking  how,  under  the  pretext  of  religion,  they  may 

1  Bor,  iii.  159.  Hoofd,  iv.  121,  122.  Strada,  vi.  252,  253. 
Archives  et  Correspondance,  iii.  48-52,  58,  59. 


1567]  SENTIMENTS  AT  THE  CAPITAL  339 

grind  the  poor  Christians,  and  grow  rich  and  powerful 
upon  their  estates  and  their  blood."  ^ 

The  Seigneur  de  Beauvoir  wrote  to  the  duchess,  claim- 
ing aU  the  estates  of  Tholouse  and  of  his  brother  Sainte- 
Aldegonde  as  his  reward  for  the  Austruweel  victory ,2 
while  Noircarmes  was  at  this  very  moment  to  commence 
at  Valenciennes  that  career  of  murder  and  spoliation 
which,  continued  at  Mons  a  few  years  afterward,  was 
to  load  his  name  with  infamy. 

From  such  a  regent,  surrounded  by  such  councilors, 
was  the  work  of  WUliam  of  Nassau's  hands  to  gain  ap- 
plause ?  What  was  it  to  them  that  carnage  and  plunder 
had  been  spared  in  one  of  the  richest  and  most  populous 
cities  in  Christendom  ?  Were  not  carnage  and  plunder 
the  very  elements  in  which  they  disported  themselves? 
And  what  more  dreadful  offense  against  God  and  Philip 
could  be  committed  than  to  permit,  as  the  prince  had 
just  permitted,  the  right  of  worship  in  a  Christian  land 
to  Calvinists  and  Lutherans?  As  a  matter  of  course, 
therefore,  Margaret  of  Parma  denounced  the  terms  by 
which  Antwerp  had  been  saved  as  a  "novel  and  exor- 
bitant capitulation,"  and  had  no  intention  of  signifying 
her  approbation  either  to  prince  or  magistrate.^ 

1  Archives  et  Correspondance,  iii.  39. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  546. 

3  Correspondance  de  Marg.  d'Autriche,  227. 


CHAPTER  X 

Egmont  and  Aersehot  before  Valenciennes— Severity  of  Egmont— 
Capitulation  of  the  city— Escape  and  capture  of  the  ministers— Ex- 
ecution of  La  Grange  and  De  Bray— Horrible  cruelty  at  Valen- 
ciennes—Effects of  the  reduction  of  Valenciennes— The  duchess  at 
Antwerp— Armed  invasion  of  the  provinces  decided  upon  in  Spain 
—Appointment  of  Alva— Indignation  of  Margaret— Mission  of  De 
Billy— Pretended  visit  of  Philip— Attempts  of  the  duchess  to  gain 
over  Orange— Mission  of  Berty— Interview  between  Orange  and 
Egmont  at  Willebroek— Orange's  letters  to  Philip,  to  Egmont, 
and  to  Horn— Orange  departs  from  the  Netherlands— Philip's 
letter  to  Egmont— Secret  intelligence  received  by  Orange— La 
Torre's  mission  to  Brederode— Brederode's  departure  and  death- 
Death  of  Berghen— Despair  in  the  provinces— Great  emigration- 
Cruelties  practised  upon  those  of  the  new  religion— Edict  of  24th 
May— Wrath  of  the  king. 

Valenciennes,  whose  fate  depended  so  closely  upon  the 
issue  of  these  various  events,  was  now  trembling  to  her 
fall.  Noircarmes  had  been  drawing  the  lines  more  and 
more  closely  about  the  city,  and  by  a  refinement  of  cruelty 
had  compelled  many  Calvinists  from  Tournay  to  act  as 
pioneers  in  the  trenches  against  their  own  brethren  in 
Valenciennes.!  After  the  defeat  of  Tholouse,  and  the 
consequent  frustration  of  all  Brederode's  arrangements 
to  relieve  the  siege,  the  duchess  had  sent  a  fresh  sum- 
mons to  Valenciennes,  together  with  letters  acquainting 

1  Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  f.  92, 
340 


1567]  SIEGE  OF  VALENCIENNES  341 

the  citizens  with  the  results  of  the  Austruweel  battle. 
The  intelligence  was  not  believed.  Egmont  and  Aer- 
schot,  however,  to  whom  Margaret  had  intrusted  this 
last  mission  to  the  beleaguered  town,  roundly  rebuked 
the  deputies  who  came  to  treat  with  them  for  their 
insolence  in  daring  to  doubt  the  word  of  the  regent. 
The  two  seigniors  had  established  themselves  in  the 
Chateau  of  Beusnage,  at  a  league's  distance  from  Valen- 
ciennes. Here  they  received  commissioners  from  the 
city,  half  of  whom  were  Catholics  appointed  by  the 
magistrates,  half  Calvinists  deputed  by  the  consistories. 
These  envoys  were  informed  that  the  duchess  would 
pardon  the  city  for  its  past  offenses,  provided  the  gates 
should  now  be  opened,  the  garrison  received,  and  a 
complete  suppression  of  all  religion  except  that  of  Rome 
acquiesced  in  without  a  murmur.  As  nearly  the  whole 
population  was  of  the  Calvinist  faith,  these  terms  could 
hardly  be  thought  favorable.  It  was,  however,  added 
that  fourteen  days  should  be  allowed  to  the  reformers 
for  the  purpose  of  converting  their  property  and  retir- 
ing from  the  country.^ 

The  deputies,  after  conferring  with  their  constituents 
in  the  city,  returned  on  the  following  day  with  counter- 
propositions,  which  were  not  more  likely  to  find  favor 
with  the  government.  They  offered  to  accept  the  garri- 
son, provided  the  soldiers  should  live  at  their  own  ex- 
pense, without  any  tax  to  the  citizens  for  their  board, 
lodging,  or  pay.  They  claimed  that  all  property  which 
had  been  seized  should  be  restored,  all  persons  accused 
of  treason  liberated.  They  demanded  the  unconditional 
revocation  of  the  edict  by  which  the  city  had  been  de- 
clared rebellious,  together  with  a  guaranty  from  the 

^  Pontus  Payen  MS.     Valenciennes  MS. 


342  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

Knights  of  the  Fleece  and  the  state  council  that  the 
terms  of  the  proposed  treaty  should  be  strictly  ob- 
served.i 

As  soon  as  these  terms  had  been  read  to  the  two 
seigniors,  the  Duke  of  Aerschot  burst  into  an  immoder- 
ate fit  of  laughter.  He  protested  that  nothing  could  be 
more  ludicrous  than  such  propositions,  worthy  of  a  con- 
queror dictating  a  peace,  thus  offered  by  a  city  closely 
beleaguered  and  entirely  at  the  mercy  of  the  enemy. 
The  duke's  hilarity  was  not  shared  by  Egmont,  who, 
on  the  contrary,  fell  into  a  furious  passion.  He  swore 
that  the  city  should  be  burned  about  their  ears,  and 
that  every  one  of  the  inhabitants  should  be  put  to  the 
sword  for  the  insolent  language  which  they  had  thus 
dared  to  address  to  a  most  clement  sovereign.  He 
ordered  the  trembling  deputies  instantly  to  return  with 
this  peremptory  rejection  of  their  terms,  and  with  his 
command  that  the  proposals  of  government  should  be 
accepted  within  three  days'  delay. 

The  commissioners  fell  upon  their  knees  at  Egmont's 
feet,  and  begged  for  mercy.  They  implored  him  at 
least  to  send  this  imperious  message  by  some  other  hand 
than  theirs,  and  to  permit  them  to  absent  themselves 
from  the  city.  They  should  be  torn  limb  from  limb, 
they  said,  by  the  enraged  inhabitants,  if  they  dared  to 
present  themselves  with  such  instructions  before  them. 
Egmont,  however,  assured  them  that  they  should  be 
sent  into  the  city  bound  hand  and  foot  if  they  did  not 
instantly  obey  his  orders.  The  deputies,  therefore, 
with  heavy  hearts,  were  fain  to  return  home  with  this 
bitter  result  to  their  negotiations.  The  terms  were  re- 
jected, as  a  matter  of  course,  but  the  gloomy  forebod- 
1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1567]  FIERCE  LOYALTY  OP  EGMONT  343 

ings  of  the  commissioners  as  to  their  own  fate  at  the 
hands  of  their  fellow-citizens  were  not  fulfilled.^ 

Instant  measures  were  now  taken  to  cannonade  the 
city.  Egmont,  at  the  hazard  of  his  life,  descended  into 
the  foss  to  reconnoiter  the  works  and  to  form  an 
opinion  as  to  the  most  eligible  quarter  at  which  to  direct 
the  batteries.2  Having  communicated  the  result  of  his 
investigations  to  Noircarmes,  he  returned  to  report  all 
these  proceedings  to  the  regent  at  Brussels.  Certainly 
the  count  had  now  separated  himself  far  enough  from 
William  of  Orange,  and  was  manifesting  an  energy  in 
the  cause  of  tyranny  which  was  sufficiently  unscrupu- 
lous. Many  people  who  had  been  deceived  by  his  more 
generous  demonstrations  in  former  times  tried  to  per- 
suade themselves  that  he  was  acting  a  part.  Noircarmes, 
however, — and  no  man  was  more  competent  to  decide 
the  question,— distinctly  expressed  his  entire  confidence 
in  Egmont's  loyalty.^  Margaret  had  responded  warmly 
to  his  eulogies,  had  read  with  approbation  secret  letters 
from  Egmont  to  Noircarmes,  and  had  expressed  the 
utmost  respect  and  affection  for  "  the  count."  Egmont 
had  also  lost  no  time  in  writing  to  Philip,  informing 
him  that  he  had  selected  the  most  eligible  spot  for  bat- 
tering down  the  obstinate  city  of  Valenciennes,  regret- 
ting that  he  could  not  have  had  the  eight  or  ten  military 
companies  now  at  his  disposal  at  an  earlier  day,  in 
which  case  he  should  have  been  able  to  suppress  many 
tumults,  but  congratulating  his  sovereign  that  the 
preachers  were  all  fugitive,  the  Reformed  religion  sup- 
pressed, and  the  people  disarmed.  He  assured  the  king 
that  he  would  neglect  no  effort  to  prevent  any  renewal 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.     Valenciennes  MS.  ^  ibid. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  502. 


344  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

of  the  tumults,  and  expressed  the  hope  that  his  Majesty 
would  be  satisfied  with  his  conduct,  notwithstanding 
the  calumnies  of  which  the  times  were  full.^ 

Noircarmes,  meanwhile,  had  unmasked  his  batteries 
and  opened  his  fire  exactly  according  to  Egmont's  sug- 
gestions.2  The  artillery  played  first  upon  what  was 
called  the  "  White  Tower,"  which  happened  to  bear  this 
ancient  rhyming  inscription : 

When  every  man  receives  his  own, 
And  justice  reigns  for  strong  and  weak, 

Perfect  shall  be  this  tower  of  stone, 
And— all  the  dumb  will  learn  to  speak.  ^ 

For  some  unknown  reason,  the  rather  insipid  quatrain 
was  tortured  into  a  baleful  prophecy.  It  was  considered 
very  ominous  that  the  battery  should  be  first  opened 
against  this  sibylline  tower.  The  chimes,  too,  which 
had  been  playing,  all  through  the  siege,  the  music  of 
Marot's  sacred  songs,  happened  that  morning  to  be 
sounding  forth  from  every  belfry  the  Twenty-second 
Psalm:  ''My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken 
me  ? "  * 

It  was  Palm  Sunday,  23d  of  March.  The  women  and 
children  were  going  mournfully  about  the  streets,  bear- 
ing green  branches  in  their  hands,  and  praying  upon 
their  knees  in  every  part  of  the  city.    Despair  and 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H,,  i.  524. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS.  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  nbi 
sup. 

8  "  Quand  chaeun  sera  satisfaict, 
Et  la  justice  regnera, 
Ce  boulevard  sera,  parfaiet, 
Et— la  muette  parlera."- Valenciennes  MS. 
*  Ibid. 


1567]  THE  CITY  TAKEN  345 

superstition  had  taken  possession  of  citizens  who  up  to 
that  period  had  justified  La  Noue's  assertion  that  none 
could  endure  a  siege  like  Huguenots.  As  soon  as  the 
cannonading  began,  the  spirit  of  the  inhabitants  seemed 
to  depart.  The  ministers  exhorted  their  flocks  in  vain 
as  the  tiles  and  chimneys  began  to  topple  into  the  streets, 
and  the  concussions  of  the  artillery  were  responded  to 
by  the  universal  wailing  of  affrighted  women.^ 

Upon  the  very  first  day  after  the  unmasking  of  the 
batteries,  the  city  sent  to  Noircarmes,  offering  almost 
an  unconditional  surrender.  Not  the  slightest  breach 
had  been  effected,  not  the  least  danger  of  an  assault 
existed,  yet  the  citizens,  who  had  earned  the  respect  of 
their  antagonists  by  the  courageous  manner  in  which 
they  had  sallied  and  skirmished  during  the  siege,  now, 
in  despair  at  any  hope  of  eventual  succor,  and  com- 
pletely demoralized  by  the  course  of  recent  events  out- 
side their  walls,  surrendered  ignominiously  and  at  dis- 
cretion.2  The  only  stipulation  agreed  to  by  Noircarmes 
was  that  the  city  should  not  be  sacked,  and  that  the 
lives  of  the  inhabitants  should  be  spared.^ 

This  pledge  was,  however,  only  made  to  be  broken. 
Noircarmes  entered  the  city  and  closed  the  gates.  All 
the  richest  citizens,  who  of  course  were  deemed  the 
most  criminal,  were  instantly  aiTcsted.  The  soldiers, 
although  not  permitted  formally  to  sack  the  city,  were 
quartered  upon  the  inhabitants,  whom  they  robbed  and 
murdered,  according  to  the  testimony  of  a  Catholic  citi- 
zen, almost  at  their  pleasure.* 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  Ibid.     Valenciennes  MS.     Bor,  iii.  142. 

3  Bor,  iii.  142.     Hoofd,  iv.  129  (bis). 
*  Valenciennes  MS. 


346  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

Michael  Herlin,  a  very  wealthy  and  distinguished 
burgher,  was  arrested  upon  the  first  day.  The  two 
ministers  Guido  do  Bray  and  Peregrine  de  la  Grange, 
together  with  the  son  of  Herlin,  eif  ected  their  escape  by 
the  water-gate.  Having  taken  refuge  in  a  tavern  at 
St.-Armand,  they  were  observed,  as  they  sat  at  supper, 
by  a  peasant,  who  forthwith  ran  off  to  the  mayor  of  the 
borough  with  the  intelligence  that  some  individuals 
who  looked  like  fugitives  had  arrived  at  St.-Armand. 
One  of  them,  said  the  informer,  was  richly  dressed  and 
wore  a  gold-hilted  sword  with  velvet  scabbard.  By  the 
description  the  mayor  recognized  Herlin  the  younger, 
and  suspected  his  companions.  They  were  all  arrested 
and  sent  to  Noircarmes.  The  two  Herlins,  father  and 
son,  were  immediately  beheaded.^  Guido  de  Bray  and 
Peregrine  de  la  Grange  were  loaded  with  chains  and 
thrown  into  a  filthy  dungeon  previously  to  their  being 
hanged.2  Here  they  were  visited  by  the  Countess  de 
Roeulx,  who  was  curious  to  see  how  the  Calvinists  sus- 
tained themselves  in  their  martyrdom.  She  asked  them 
how  they  could  sleep,  eat,  or  di'ink  when  covered  with 
such  heavy  fetters.  ''The  cause,  and  my  good  con- 
science," answered  De  Bray,  ''  make  me  eat,  drink,  and 
sleep  better  than  those  who  are  doing  me  wrong.  These 
shackles  are  more  honorable  to  me  than  golden  rings 
and  chains.  They  are 'more  useful  to  me,  and  as  I  hear 
their  clank,  methinks  I  hear  the  music  of  sweet  voices 
and  the  tinkling  of  lutes."  ^ 

This  exaltation  never  deserted  these  courageous  en- 
thusiasts.    They  received  their  condemnation  to  death 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  Brandt,  Reformatie,  i.  448,  449. 

3  Ibid.    Hist,  des  Mart.,  f.  661,  662,  apud  Brandt. 


1567]  CHASTISEMENT  347 

"  as  if  it  had  been  an  invitation  to  a  marriage-feast."  ^ 
They  encouraged  the  friends  who  crowded  their  path  to 
the  scaffold  with  exhortations  to  remain  true  in  the  Re- 
formed faith.  La  Grange,  standing  upon  the  ladder, 
proclaimed  with  a  loud  voice  that  he  was  slain  for  hav- 
ing preached  the  pure  Word  of  God  to  a  Christian  people 
in  a  Christian  land.  De  Bray,  under  the  same  gibbet, 
testified  stoutly  that  he,  too,  had  committed  that  offense 
alone.  He  warned  his  friends  to  obey  the  magistrates 
and  all  others  in  authority,  except  in  matters  of  con- 
science ;  to  abstain  from  sedition,  but  to  obey  the  will 
of  God.  The  executioner  threw  him  from  the  ladder 
while  he  was  yet  speaking.  So  ended  the  lives  of  two 
eloquent,  learned,  and  highly  gifted  divines.^ 

Many  hundreds  of  victims  were  sacrificed  in  the 
unfortunate  city.  ''There  were  a  great  many  other 
citizens  strangled  or  beheaded,"  says  an  aristocratic 
Catholic  historian  of  the  time,  "  but  they  were  mostly 
personages  of  little  quality,  whose  names  are  quite  un- 
known to  me."  3  The  franchises  of  the  city  were  all 
revoked.  There  was  a  prodigious  amount  of  property 
confiscated  to  the  benefit  of  Noircarmes  and  the  rest  of 
the  ''seven  sleepers."  Many  Calvinists  were  burned, 
others  were  hanged.  "jPor  two  wJiole  years,"  says 
another  Catholic,  who  was  a  citizen  of  Valenciennes  at 
the  time,  "  there  was  scarcely  a  week  in  which  several  citi- 
zens were  not  executed,  and  often  a  great  number  were  de- 

1  "En  schiekten  sich  soo  blij  moedelijk  tot  8terven  als  of  ze  ter 
bruiloft  gingen."— Brandt,  ubi  sup. 

2  Ibid.     Hist,  des  Martyi's,  ubi  sup. 

^  Pontus  Payen  MS.  :  "  Beau  coup  d'autres  bourgeois  receurent 
depuis  pareil  traictement,  qui  estoient  personnages  de  petite  quality 
et  k  moy  incognus." 


848  THE  EISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

spatched  at  a  time.  All  this  gave  so  much  alarm  to  the 
good  and  innocent  that  many  quitted  the  city  as  fast  as 
they  could."  ^  If  the  good  and  innocent  happened  to  be 
rich,  they  might  be  sure  that  Noircarmes  would  deem  that 
a  crime  for  which  no  goodness  and  innocence  could  atone. 
Upon  the  fate  of  Valenciennes  had  depended,  as  if  by 
common  agreement,  the  whole  destiny  of  the  anti-Catho- 
lic party.  "People  had  learned  at  last,"  says  another 
"Walloon,  "that  the  king  had  long  arms,  and  that  he 
had  not  been  enlisting  soldiers  to  string  beads.  So 
they  drew  in  their  horns  and  their  evil  tempers,  mean- 
ing to  put  them  forth  again,  should  the  government  not 
succeed  at  the  siege  of  Valenciennes."  2  The  govern- 
ment had  succeeded,  however,  and  the  consternation 
was  extreme,  the  general  submission  immediate  and 
even  abject.  "The  capture  of  Valenciennes,"  wrote 
Noircarmes  to  Granvelle,  "  has  worked  a  miracle.  The 
other  cities  all  come  forth  to  meet  me,  putting  the  rope 
around  their  own  necks."  ^  No  opposition  was  offered 
anywhere.  Tournay  had  been  crushed;  Valenciennes, 
Bois-le-Duc,  and  all  other  important  places  accepted 
their  garrisons  without  a  murmur.  Even  Antwerp  had 
made  its  last  struggle,  and  as  soon  as  the  back  of 
Orange  was  turned,  knelt  down  in  the  dust  to  receive 
its  bridle.  The  prince  had  been  able,  by  his  courage 
and  wisdom,  to  avert  a  sanguinary  conflict  within  its 
walls,  but  his  personal  presence  alone  could  guarantee 
anything  like  religious  liberty  for  the  inhabitants,  now 
that  the  rest  of  the  country  was  subdued.  On  the  26th 
April  sixteen  companies  of  infantry,  under  Count  Mans- 

1  Valenciennes  MS. 

2  Eenom  de  France  MS.,  i.  35,  37. 

3  Gachard,  Preface  to  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  clxi.,  note  2. 


1567]  APPOINTMENT  OF  ALVA  349 

feld,  entered  the  gates.^  On  the  28th  the  duchess  made 
a  visit  to  the  city,  where  she  was  received  with  respect, 
but  where  her  eyes  were  shocked  by  that  which  she 
termed  the  '^  abominable,  sad,  and  hideous  spectacle  of 
the  desolated  churches."  ^ 

To  the  eyes  of  all  who  loved  their  fatherland  and 
their  race,  the  sight  of  a  desolate  country,  with  its 
ancient  charters  superseded  by  brute  force,  its  indus- 
trious population  swarming  from  the  land  in  droves, 
as  if  the  pestilence  were  raging,  with  gibbets  and  scaf- 
folds erected  in  every  village,  and  with  a  sickening  and 
universal  apprehension  of  still  darker  disasters  to  follow, 
was  a  spectacle  still  more  sad,  hideous,  and  abominable. 

For  it  was  now  decided  that  the  Duke  of  Alva,  at  the 
head  of  a  Spanish  army,  should  forthwith  take  his  de- 
parture for  the  Netherlands.  A  land  already  subjugated 
was  to  be  crushed,  and  every  vestige  of  its  ancient  lib- 
erties destroyed.  The  conquered  provinces,  once  the 
abode  of  municipal  liberty,  of  science,  art,  and  literature, 
and  blessed  with  an  unexampled  mercantile  and  manu- 
facturing prosperity,  were  to  be  placed  in  absolute  sub- 
jection to  the  cabinet  council  at  Madrid.  A  dull  and 
malignant  bigot,  assisted  by  a  few  Spanish  grandees, 
and  residing  at  the  other  extremity  of  Europe,  was 
thenceforth  to  exercise  despotic  authority  over  countries 
which  for  centuries  had  enjoyed  a  local  administration 
and  a  system  nearly  approaching  to  complete  self-gov- 
ernment. Such  was  the  policy  devised  by  Granvelle 
and  Spinosa,^  which  the  Duke  of  Alva,  upon  the  15th 
April,  had  left  Madrid  to  enforce. 

1  Gachard,  Preface,  etc.,  Ixxxix. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit,,  ii.  383-386. 

3  Confessions  of  Del  Ryo. 


350  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

It  was  very  natural  that  Margaret  of  Parma  should 
be  indignant  at  being  thus  superseded.  She  considered 
herself  as  having  acquired  much  credit  by  the  manner 
in  which  the  latter  insurrectionary  movements  had  been 
suppressed,  so  soon  as  Philip,  after  his  endless  tergiver- 
sations, had  supplied  her  with  arms  and  money.  There- 
fore she  wrote  in  a  tone  of  great  asperity  to  her  brother, 
expressing  her  discontent.  She  had  always  been  tram- 
meled in  her  action,  she  said,  by  his  restrictions  upon 
her  authority.  She  complained  that  he  had  no  regard 
for  her  reputation  or  her  peace  of  mind.  Notwithstand- 
ing all  impediments  and  dangers,  she  had  at  last  settled 
the  country,  and  now  another  person  was  to  reap  the 
honor.i  She  also  despatched  the  Seigneur  de  Billy  to 
Spain,  for  the  purpose  of  making  verbal  representations 
to  his  Majesty  upon  the  inexpediency  of  sending  the 
Duke  of  Alva  to  the  Netherlands  at  that  juncture  with 
a  Spanish  army.^ 

Margaret  gained  nothing,  however,  by  her  letters  and 
her  envoy,  save  a  round  rebuke  from  Philip,  who  was 
not  accustomed  to  brook  the  language  of  remonstrance, 
even  from  his  sister.  His  purpose  was  fixed.  Absolute 
submission  was  now  to  be  rendered  by  all.  "He  was 
highly  astonished  and  dissatisfied,"  he  said,  "that  she 
should  dare  to  write  to  him  with  so  much  passion  and 
in  so  resolute  a  manner.  If  she  received  no  other  rec- 
ompense save  the  glory  of  having  restored  the  service 
of  God,  she  ought  to  express  her  gratitude  to  the  king 
for  having  given  her  the  opportunity  of  so  doing."  ^ 

The  affectation  of  clement  intentions  was  still  main- 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  523. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS.     Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  536. 
8  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  1.  540. 


1567]  PRETENDED  VISIT  OF  PHILIP  351 

tained,  together  with  the  empty  pretense  of  the  royal 
visit.  Alva  and  his  army  were  coming  merely  to  pre- 
pare the  way  for  the  king,  who  still  represented  himself 
as  "  debonair  and  gentle,  slow  to  anger,  and  averse  from 
bloodshed."  Superficial  people  believed  that  the  king 
was  reaUy  coming,  and  hoped  wonders  from  his  advent. 
The  duchess  knew  better.  The  pope  never  believed  in 
it,  GranveUe  never  believed  in  it,  the  Prince  of  Orange 
never  believed  in  it,  Councilor  d'Assonleville  never 
believed  in  it.  ''His  Majesty,"  says  the  Walloon  his- 
torian who  wrote  from  Assonleville's  papers,  ''had 
many  imperative  reasons  for  not  coming.  He  was  fond 
of  quiet,  he  was  a  great  negotiator,  distinguished  for 
phlegm  and  modesty,  disinclined  to  long  journeys,  par- 
ticularly to  sea  voyages,  which  were  very  painful  to 
him.  Moreover,  he  was  then  building  his  Escorial  with 
so  much  taste  and  affection  that  it  was  impossible  for 
him  to  leave  home."  i  These  excellent  reasons  sufficed 
to  detain  the  monarch,  in  whose  place  a  general  was 
appointed,  who,  it  must  be  confessed,  was  neither  phleg- 
matic nor  modest,  and  whose  energies  were  quite  equal 
to  the  work  required.  There  had  in  truth  never  been 
anything  in  the  king's  project  of  visiting  the  Nether- 
lands but  pretense.2 

On  the  other  hand,  the  work  of  Orange  for  the  time 
was  finished.  He  had  saved  Antwerp,  he  had  done  his 
best  to  maintain  the  liberties  of  the  country,  the  rights 
of  conscience,  and  the  royal  authority,  so  far  as  they 
were  compatible  with  each  other.  The  alternative  had 
now  been  distinctly  forced  upon  every  man  either  to 

1  Renom  de  France  MS.,  i.  29. 

2  "Nihil  profectionis  inerat,  praeter  speeiem,"  says  Strada,  vi. 
280. 


352  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

promise  blind  obedience  or  to  accept  the  position  of  a 
rebel.  William  of  Orange  had  thus  become  a  rebel. 
He  had  been  requested  to  sign  the  new  oath,  greedily 
taken  by  the  Mansf  elds,  the  Berlaymonts,  the  Aerschots, 
and  the  Egmonts,  to  obey  every  order  which  he  might 
receive,  against  every  person  and  in  every  place,  with- 
out restriction  or  limitation/  and  he  had  distinctly  and 
repeatedly  declined  the  demand.  He  had  again  and  again 
insisted  upon  resigning  all  his  offices.  The  duchess, 
more  and  more  anxious  to  gain  over  such  an  influential 
personage  to  the  cause  of  tyranny,  had  been  most  im- 
portunate in  her  requisitions.  '^  A  man  with  so  noble  a 
heart,"  she  wrote  to  the  prince,  ''and  with  a  descent 
from  such  illustrious  and  loyal  ancestors,  can  surely  not 
forget  his  duties  to  his  Majesty  and  the  country."  2 

William  of  Orange  knew  his  duty  to  both  better  than 
the  duchess  could  understand.  He  answered  this  fresh 
summons  by  reminding  her  that  he  had  uniformly  re- 
fused the  new  and  extraordinary  pledge  required  of  him. 
He  had  been  true  to  his  old  oaths,  and  therefore  no 
fresh  pledge  was  necessary.  Moreover,  a  pledge  with- 
out limitation  he  would  never  take.  The  case  might 
happen,  he  said,  that  he  should  be  ordered  to  do  things 
contrary  to  his  conscience,  prejudicial  to  his  Majesty's 
service,  and  in  violation  of  his  oaths  to  maintain  the 
laws  of  the  country.  He  therefore  once  more  resigned 
all  his  offices,  and  signified  his  intention  of  leaving  the 
provinces.^ 

Margaret  had  previously  invited  him  to  an  interview 
at  Brussels,  which  he  had  declined,  because  he  had  dis- 
covered a  conspiracy  in  that  place  to  "  play  him  a  trick." 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  iii.  43-48. 

2  Ibid.  3  Ibid. 


1567]  EFFORTS  TO  GAIN  THE  PRINCE  353 

Assonleville  had  already  been  sent  to  him  without  effect. 
He  had  refused  to  meet  a  deputation  of  Fleece  Knights 
at  Mechlin,  from  the  same  suspicion  of  foul  play.  After 
the  termination  of  the  Antwerp  tumult,  Orange  again 
wrote  to  the  duchess,  upon  the  19th  March,  repeating  his 
refusal  to  take  the  oath,  and  stating  that  he  considered 
himself  as  at  least  suspended  from  all  his  functions,  since 
she  had  refused,  upon  the  ground  of  incapacity,  to  accept 
his  formal  resignation.  Margaret  now  determined,  by 
the  advice  of  the  state  council,  to  send  Secretary  Berty, 
provided  with  an  ample  letter  of  instructions,  upon  a 
special  mission  to  the  prince  at  Antwerp.  That  respec- 
table functionary  performed  his  task  with  credit,  going 
through  the  usual  formalities,  and  adducing  the  thread- 
bare arguments  in  favor  of  the  unlimited  oath  with 
much  adroitness  and  decorum.  He  mildly  pointed  out 
the  impropriety  of  laying  down  such  responsible  posts 
as  those  which  the  prince  now  occupied  at  such  a  junc- 
ture. He  alluded  to  the  distress  which  the  step  must 
occasion  to  the  debonair  sovereign. 

William  of  Orange  became  somewhat  impatient  under 
the  official  lecture  of  this  secretary  to  the  privy  council, 
a  mere  man  of  sealing-wax  and  protocols.  The  slender 
stock  of  platitudes  with  which  he  had  come  provided 
was  soon  exhausted.  His  arguments  shriveled  at  once 
in  the  scorn  with  which  the  prince  received  them.  The 
great  statesman,  who,  it  was  hoped,  would  be  entrapped 
to  ruin,  dishonor,  and  death  by  such  very  feeble  arti- 
fices, asked  indignantly  whether  it  were  really  expected 
that  he  should  acknowledge  himself  perjured  to  his  old 
obligations  by  now  signing  new  ones;  that  he  should 
disgrace  himself  by  an  unlimited  pledge  which  might 
require  him  to  break  his  oaths  to  the  provincial  statutes 

VOL.  II.— 23 


364  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

and  to  the  emperor;  that  he  should  consent  to  admin- 
ister the  religious  edicts  which  he  abhorred;  that  he 
should  act  as  executioner  of  Christians  on  account  of 
their  religious  opinions,  an  office  against  which  his  soul 
revolted ;  that  he  should  bind  himself  by  an  unlimited 
promise  which  might  require  him  to  put  his  own  wife 
to  death,  because  she  was  a  Lutheran.  Moreover,  was 
it  to  be  supposed  that  he  would  obey  without  restriction 
any  orders  issued  to  him  in  his  Majesty's  name,  when 
the  king's  representative  might  be  a  person  whose  su- 
premacy it  ill  became  one  of  his  race  to  acknowledge? 
Was  William  of  Orange  to  receive  absolute  commands 
from  the  Duke  of  Alva  ?  Having  mentioned  that  name 
with  indignation,  the  prince  became  silent.^ 

It  was  very  obvious  that  no  impression  was  to  be 
made  upon  the  man  by  formalists.  Poor  Berty,  having 
conjugated  his  paradigm  conscientiously  through  aU  its 
moods  and  tenses,  returned  to  his  green  board  in  the 
council-room  with  his  proces  verbal  of  the  conference. 
Before  he  took  his  leave,  however,  he  prevailed  upon 
Orange  to  hold  an  interview  with  the  Duke  of  Aerschot, 
Count  Mansfeld,  and  Count  Egmont.^ 

This  memorable  meeting  took  place  at  Willebroek,  a 
village  midway  between  Antwerp  and  Brussels,  in  the 
first  week  of  April.  The  Duke  of  Aerschot  was  pre- 
vented from  attending,  but  Mansfeld  and  Egmont— 
accompanied  by  the  faithful  Berty,  to  make  another 
proems    verbal— duly    made    their    appearance.^     The 

1  Strada,  vi.  265-268.  Hoofd,  iv.  130,  Corresp.  de  Guillaume 
le  Tacit.,  ii.  354,  355-369,  370,  391-417.  2  strada,  vi.  268. 

3  Correspondanee  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  416-418.  The  proces 
verbal  made  by  Berty  upon  this  occasion  has  been  lost  (Gaehard, 
note,  p.  417 ;  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.).   Compare  Strada,  vi.  268,  269. 


1567]  THE  WILLEBEOEK  INTERVIEW  355 

prince  had  never  felt  much  sympathy  with  Mansfeld, 
but  a  tender  and  honest  friendship  had  always  ex- 
isted between  himself  and  Egmont,  notwithstanding 
the  difference  of  their  characters,  the  incessant  artifices 
employed  by  the  Spanish  court  to  separate  them,  and 
the  impassable  chasm  which  now  existed  between  their 
respective  positions  toward  the  government. 

The  same  commonplaces  of  argument  and  rhetoric 
were  now  discussed  between  Orange  and  the  other 
three  personages,  the  prince  distinctly  stating,  in  con- 
clusion, that  he  considered  himself  as  discharged  from 
all  his  offices,  and  that  he  was  about  to  leave  the  Neth- 
erlands for  Germany.  The  interview,  had  it  been  con- 
fined to  such  formal  conversation,  would  have  but  little 
historic  interest.  Egmont's  choice  had  been  made. 
Several  months  before  he  had  signified  his  determina- 
tion to  hold  those  for  enemies  who  should  cease  to 
conduct  themselves  as  faithful  vassals,  declared  himself 
to  be  without  fear  that  the  country  was  to  be  placed  in 
the  hands  of  Spaniards,  and  disavowed  all  intention,  in 
any  case  whatever,  of  taking  arms  against  the  king.^ 
His  subsequent  course,  as  we  have  seen,  had  been  en- 
tirely in  conformity  with  these  solemn  declarations. 
Nevertheless,  the  prince,  to  whom  they  had  been  made, 
thought  it  still  possible  to  withdraw  his  friend  from  the 
precipice  upon  which  he  stood,  and  to  save  him  from 
his  impending  fate.  His  love  for  Egmont  had,  in  his 
own  noble  and  pathetic  language,  "  struck  its  roots  too 
deeply  into  his  heart "  to  permit  him,  in  this  their  part- 
ing interview,  to  neglect  a  last  effort,  even  if  this  solemn 
warning  were  destined  to  be  disregarded. 

By  any  reasonable  construction  of  history,  Philip  was 

1  Gaehard,  Preface  to  vol.  ii.     Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  cix. 


356  THE  EISE   OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

an  unscrupulous  usurper,  who  was  attempting  to  con- 
vert himself  from  a  Duke  of  Brabant  and  a  Count  of 
Holland  into  an  absolute  king.  It  was  William  who 
was  maintaining,  Philip  who  was  destroying ;  and  the 
monarch  who  was  thus  blasting  the  happiness  of  the 
provinces,  and  about  to  decimate  their  population,  was 
by  the  same  process  to  undermine  his  own  power  for- 
ever, and  to  divest  himself  of  his  richest  inheritance. 
The  man  on  whom  he  might  have  leaned  for  support, 
had  he  been  capable  of  comprehending  his  character 
and  of  understanding  the  age  in  which  he  had  himself 
been  called  upon  to  reign,  was,  through  Philip's  own 
insanity,  converted  into  the  instrument  by  which  his 
most  valuable  provinces  were  to  be  taken  from  him, 
and  eventually  reorganized  into  an  independent  com- 
monwealth. Could  a  vision,  like  that  imagined  by  the 
immortal  dramatist  for  another  tyrant  and  murderer, 
have  revealed  the  future  to  Philip,  he,  too,  might  have 
beheld  his  victim,  not  crowned  himself,  but  pointing  to 
a  line  of  kings,  even  to  some  who  twofold  Mils  and  treble 
scepters  carried,  and  smiling  on  them  for  his.  But  such 
considerations  as  these  had  no  effect  upon  the  Prince  of 
Orange.  He  knew  himself  already  proscribed,  and  he 
knew  that  the  secret  condemnation  had  extended  to 
Egmont  also.  He  was  anxious  that  his  friend  should 
prefer  the  privations  of  exile,  with  the  chance  of  becom- 
ing the  champion  of  a  struggling  country,  to  the 
wretched  fate  toward  which  his  blind  confidence  was 
leading  him.  Even  then  it  seemed  possible  that  the 
brave  soldier,  who  had  been  recently  defiling  his  sword 
in  the  cause  of  tyranny,  might  become  mindful  of  his 
brighter  and  earlier  fame.  Had  Egmont  been  as  true 
to  his  native  land  as,  until  "  the  long  divorce  of  steel 


LAST    INTERVIEW    OF   WILLIAM    OF   ORANGE   AND    COUNT    EGMONT. 
PaintinjT  by  Mux  Adaiiio. 


1567]  THE  FAREWELL  357 

fell  on  him,"  he  was  faithful  to  Philip,  he  might  yet 
have  earned  brighter  laurels  than  those  gained  at  St.- 
Quentin  and  Gravelines.  Was  he  doomed  to  fall,  he 
might  find  a  glorious  death  upon  freedom's  battle-field, 
in  place  of  that  darker  departure  then  so  near  him, 
which  the  prophetic  language  of  Orange  depicted,  but 
which  he  was  too  sanguine  to  fear.  He  spoke  with  confi- 
dence of  the  royal  clemency.  "  Alas,  Egmont,"  answered 
the  prince,  ^'  the  king's  clemency,  of  which  you  boast,  will 
destroy  you.  Would  that  I  might  be  deceived,  but  I 
foresee  too  clearly  that  you  are  to  be  the  bridge  which 
the  Spaniards  wiU  destroy  so  soon  as  they  have  passed 
over  it  to  invade  our  country."  ^  With  these  last  solemn 
words  he  concluded  his  appeal  to  awaken  the  count 
from  his  fatal  security.  Then,  as  if  persuaded  that  he 
was  looking  upon  his  friend  for  the  last  time,  William 
of  Orange  threw  his  arms  around  Egmont,  and  held 
him  for  a  moment  in  a  close  embrace.  Tears  fell  from 
the  eyes  of  both  at  this  parting  moment,  and  then  the 
brief  scene  of  simple  and  lofty  pathos  terminated ;  Eg- 
mont and  Orange  separated  from  each  other,  never  to 
meet  again  on  earth.^ 

1  Strada,  vi.  286.     Compare  Bentivoglio,  iii.  55. 

2  Strada.  Hoofd  alludes  to  a  rumor,  according  to  which  Egmont 
said  to  Orange  at  parting,  "Adieu,  landless  Prince  ! "  and  was  an- 
swered by  his  friend  with  "Adieu,  headless  Count!"  "Men 
voeght'er  by  dat  zy  voorts  elkandre,  Prins  zonder  goedt,  Graaf 
zonder  hooft,  zouden  adieu  gezeit  hebben."  The  story  has  been 
often  repeated,  yet  nothing  could  well  be  more  insipid  than  such 
an  invention.  Hoofd  observes  that  the  whole  conversation  was 
reported  by  a  person  whom  the  Calvinists  had  concealed  in  the 
chimney  of  the  apartment  where  the  interview  took  place.  It 
would  be  difficult  to  believe  in  such  epigrams  even  had  the  histo- 
rian himself  been  in  the  chimney.     He,  however,  only  gives  the 


358  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

A  few  days  afterward  Orange  addressed  a  letter  to 
Philip,  once  more  resigning  all  his  offices,  and  announ- 
cing his  intention  of  departing  from  the  Netherlands  for 
Germany.  He  added  that  he  should  be  always  ready 
to  place  himself  and  his  property  at  the  king's  orders 
in  everything  which  he  believed  conducive  to  the  true 
service  of  his  Majesty.^  The  prince  had  already  re- 
ceived a  remarkable  warning  from  old  Landgrave  Philip 
of  Hesse,  who  had  not  forgotten  the  insidious  manner  in 
which  his  own  memorable  captivity  had  been  brought 
about  by  the  arts  of  Granvelle  and  of  Alva.  "  Let  them 
not  smear  your  mouths  with  honey,"  said  the  land- 
grave. ^'If  the  three  seigniors  of  whom  the  Duchess 
Margaret  has  had  so  much  to  say  are  invited  to  court 
by  Alva,  under  pretext  of  friendly  consultation,  let 
them  be  wary  and  think  twice  ere  they  accept.  I  know 
the  Duke  of  Alva  and  the  Spaniards,  and  how  they  dealt 
with  me."  ^ 

The  prince,  before  he  departed,  took  a  final  leave  of 
Horn  and  Egmont,  by  letters  which,  as  if  aware  of  the 
monumental  character  they  were  to  assume  for  posterity, 
he  drew  up  in  Latin.^  He  desired,  now  that  he  was 
turning  his  back  upon  the  country,  that  those  two 
nobles  who  had  refused  to  imitate  and  had  advised 
against  his  course  should  remember  that  he  was  acting 
deliberately,  conscientiously,  and  in  pursuance  of  a  long- 
settled  plan. 

To  Count  Horn  he  declared  himself  unable  to  connive 

anecdote  as  a  rumor,  which  he  does  not  himself  believe.  "  Twelk 
ik  nochtans  niet  zoo  zeeker  houde,"  etc.— Hoofd,  Nederl.  Hist., 
iv.  131. 

1  Archives  et  Correspondance,  iii.  64,  65. 

2  Ibid.,  iii.  42.  3  ibid.,  iii.  69-73. 


1567]  DEPARTURE   OF   ORANGE  359 

longer  at  the  sins  daily  committed  against  the  country 
and  his  own  conscience.  He  assured  him  that  the  gov- 
ernment had  been  accustoming  the  country  to  panniers, 
in  order  that  it  might  now  accept  patiently  the  saddle 
and  bridle.  For  himself,  he  said,  his  back  was  not 
strong  enough  for  the  weight  already  imposed  upon  it, 
and  he  preferred  to  endure  any  calamity  which  might 
happen  to  him  in  exile,  rather  than  be  compelled  by 
those  whom  they  had  all  condemned  to  acquiesce  in  the 
object  so  long  and  steadily  pursued.^ 

He  reminded  Egmont,  who  had  been  urging  him  by 
letter  to  remain,  that  his  resolution  had  been  deliberately 
taken,  and  long  since  communicated  to  his  friends.  He 
could  not,  in  conscience,  take  the  oath  required  5  nor 
would  he,  now  that  all  eyes  were  turned  upon  him, 
remain  in  the  land,  the  only  recusant.  He  preferred  to 
encounter  all  that  could  happen,  rather  than  attempt  to 
please  others  by  the  sacrifice  of  liberty,  of  his  father- 
land, of  his  own  conscience.  '•  I  hope,  therefore,"  said 
he  to  Egmont  in  conclusion,  "  that  you,  after  weighing 
my  reasons,  will  not  disapprove  my  departure.  The 
rest  I  leave  to  God,  who  will  dispose  of  all  as  may  most 
conduce  to  the  glory  of  his  name.  For  yourself,  I  pray 
you  to  believe  that  you  have  no  more  sincere  friend 
than  I  am.  My  love  for  you  has  struck  such  deep  root 
into  my  heart  that  it  can  be  lessened  by  no  distance  of 
time  or  place,  and  I  pray  you  in  return  to  maintain  the 
same  feelings  toward  me  which  you  have  always  cher- 
ished." 2 

The  prince  had  left  Antwerp  upon  the  11th  April,  and 
had  written  these  letters  from  Breda  upon  the  13th  of 

1  ArcMves  et  Correspondance,  iii.  69-73. 

2  Ibid. 


360  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

the  same  month.  Upon  the  22d  he  took  his  departure 
for  Dillenburg,  the  ancestral  seat  of  his  family  in  Ger- 
many, by  the  way  of  Grave  and  Cleves.^ 

It  was  not  to  be  supposed  that  this  parting  message 
would  influence  Egmont's  decision  with  regard  to  his 
own  movements,  when  his  determination  had  not  been 
shaken  at  his  memorable  interview  with  the  prince. 
The  count's  fate  was  sealed.  Had  he  not  been  praised 
by  Noircarmes ;  had  he  not  earned  the  hypocritical  com- 
mendations of  Duchess  Margaret ;  nay,  more,  had  he  not 
just  received  a  most  affectionate  letter  of  thanks  and 
approbation  from  the  King  of  Spain  himself?  This 
letter,  one  of  the  most  striking  monuments  of  Philip's 
cold-blooded  pei-fidy,  was  dated  the  26th  of  March.  "  I 
am  pleased,  my  cousin,"  wrote  the  monarch  to  Egmont, 
"  that  you  have  taken  the  new  oath,  not  that  I  considered 
it  at  all  necessary  so  far  as  regards  yourself,  but  for  the 
example  which  you  have  thus  given  to  others,  and  which 
I  hope  they  will  all  follow.  I  have  received  not  less 
pleasure  in  hearing  of  the  excellent  manner  in  which  you 
are  doing  your  duty,  the  assistance  you  are  rendering 
and  the  offers  which  you  are  making  to  my  sister,  for 
which  I  thank  you,  and  request  you  to  continue  in  the 
same  course."  ^ 

The  words  were  written  by  the  royal  hand  which  had 
already  signed  the  death-warrant  of  the  man  to  whom 
they  were  addressed.  Alva,  who  came  provided  with 
full  powers  to  carry  out  the  great  scheme  resolved  upon, 
unrestrained  by  provincial  laws  or  by  the  statutes  of 
the  Golden  Fleece,  had  left  Madrid  to  embark  for  Car- 
tagena at  the  very  moment  when  Egmont  was  reading 

^  Archives  et  Correspondance,  iii.  73,  74. 
2  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  544. 


1567]  PERFIDY  OF   PHILIP  361 

the  royal  letter.^  "The  Spanish  honey,"  to  use  once 
more  old  Landgrave  Philip's  homely  metaphor,  had  done 
its  work,  and  the  unfortunate  victim  was  already  en- 
trapped. 

Count  Horn  remained  in  gloomy  silence  in  his  lair  at 
Weerdt,  awaiting  the  hunters  of  men,  already  on  their 
way.  It  seemed  inconceivable  that  he,  too,  who  knew 
himself  suspected  and  disliked,  should  have  thus  blinded 
himself  to  his  position.  It  will  be  seen,  however,  that 
the  same  perfidy  was  to  be  employed  to  ensnare  him 
which  proved  so  successful  with  Egmont. 

As  for  the  prince  himself,  he  did  not  move  too  soon. 
Not  long  after  his  arrival  in  Germany,  Vandenesse,  the 
king's  private  secretary,  but  Orange's  secret  agent,  wrote 
him  word  that  he  had  read  letters  from  the  king  to  Alva, 
in  which  the  duke  was  instructed  to  "  arrest  the  prince 
as  soon  as  he  could  lay  hands  upon  him,  and  not  to  let 
7m  trial  last  more  than  twenty-four  hours" ^ 

Brederode  had  remained  at  Vianen,  and  afterward  at 
Amsterdam,  since  the  ill-starred  expedition  of  Tholouse, 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  528,  15th  April,  1567. 

2  This  appears  in  a  document,  never  yet  published,  in  the  Royal 
Archives  at  Dresden.  It  is  a  report  drawn  up  by  Captain  von  Ber- 
lepsch  of  an  interview  held  with  the  Prince  of  Orange,  to  whom 
he  had  been  deputed  by  the  Elector  Augustus  of  Saxony.  It  is  to 
be  remarked,  moreover,  that  Augustus  at  this  period  (November, 
1567)  declined  receiving  the  prince  at  Dresden,  while  professing 
the  greatest  interest  in  his  welfare  (unpublished  letter  from 
Elector  Augustus  to  Prince  W.  of  Orange,  10th  November,  1567,  in 
Dresden  Archives).  "  So  hatte  auch  des  Konnings  Vortrauter  Kem- 
merling  Signer  Vandenes  auch  in  grosser  geheim  warnen  laszen 
dasz  ehr  hette  aufs  Konnings  tische  briefe  gesehen  ahn  Hertzogen 
von  Alba,  darin  bewohlen,  s.  fg.  nachzutrachten  und  wan  man  ihn 
bekeme,  seinen  procesz  nieht  uber  24  Stunden  zuvorlengem."— 
Bericht  von  Hauptm.  v.  Berlepsch. 


362  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

which  he  had  organized,  but  at  which  he  had  not  as- 
sisted. He  had  given  much  annoyance  to  the  magis- 
tracy of  Amsterdam  and  to  all  respectable  persons,  Cal- 
vinist  or  Catholic.  He  made  much  mischief,  but  excited 
no  hopes  in  the  minds  of  reformers.  He  was  ever  sur- 
rounded by  a  host  of  pot-companions,  swaggering  nobles 
disguised  as  sailors,  bankrupt  tradesmen,  fugitives  and 
outlaws  of  every  description— excellent  people  to  drink 
the  beggars'  health  and  to  bawl  the  beggars'  songs,  but 
quite  unfit  for  any  serious  enterprise.^  People  of  sub- 
stance were  wary  of  him,  for  they  had  no  confidence  in 
his  capacity,  and  were  afraid  of  his  frequent  demands 
for  contributions  to  the  patriotic  cause.  He  spent  his 
time  in  the  pleasure-gardens,  shooting  at  the  mark  with 
harquebus  or  crossbow,  drinking  with  his  comrades,  and 
shrieking  '^  Vivent  les  gueux !  "  ^ 

The  regent,  determined  to  dislodge  him,  had  sent 
Secretary  La  Torre  to  him  in  March,  with  instructions 
that  if  Brederode  refused  to  leave  Amsterdam  the  ma- 
gistracy were  to  call  for  assistance  upon  Count  Meghen, 
who  had  a  regiment  at  Utrecht.^  This  clause  made  it 
impossible  for  La  Torre  to  exhibit  his  instructions  to 
Brederode.  Upon  his  refusal,  that  personage,  although 
he  knew  the  secretary  as  well  as  he  knew  his  own  father, 
coolly  informed  him  that  he  knew  nothing  about  him ; 
that  he  did  not  consider  him  as  respectable  a  person  as 
he  pretended  to  be ;  that  he  did  not  believe  a  word  of 
his  having  any  commission  from  the  duchess,  and  that 
he  should  therefore  take  no  notice  whatever  of  his  de- 

1  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  434,  454.  Bor,  iii. 
161.     Hoofd,  V.  127. 

2  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  434,  454 
8  Ibid.,  ii.  439,  440.    Bor,  iti.  161,  162. 


1567]  BREDERODE  AT  AMSTERDAM  363 

mands.  La  Torre  answered  meekly  that  lie  was  not  so 
presumptuous,  nor  so  destitute  of  sense,  as  to  put  himself 
into  comparison  with  a  gentleman  of  Count  Brederode's 
quality,  but  that,  as  he  had  served  as  secretaiy  to  the 
privy  council  for  twenty-three  years,  he  had  thought 
that  he  might  be  believed  upon  his  word.  Hereupon 
La  Torre  drew  up  a  formal  protest,  and  Brederode  drew 
up  another.  La  Torre  made  a  proces  verbal  of  their 
interview,  while  Brederode  stormed  like  a  madman  and 
abused  the  duchess  for  a  capricious  and  unreasonable 
tjTant.  He  ended  by  imprisoning  La  Torre  for  a  day 
or  two,  and  seizing  his  papers.  By  a  singular  coinci- 
dence, these  events  took  place  on  the  13th,  14th,  and 
15th  of  March,!  the  very  days  of  the  great  Antwerp 
tumult.  The  manner  in  which  the  Prince  of  Orange 
had  been  dealing  with  forty  or  fifty  thousand  armed 
men  anxious  to  cut  each  othei-'s  throats,  while  Brederode 
was  thus  occupied  in  browbeating  a  pragmatical  but 
decent  old  secretary,  illustrated  the  difference  in  caliber 
of  the  two  men. 

This  was  the  count's  last  exploit.  He  remained  at 
Amsterdam  some  weeks  longer,  but  the  events  which 
succeeded  changed  the  Hector  into  a  faithful  vassal. 
Before  the  12th  of  April  he  wrote  to  Egmont,  begging 
his  intercession  with  Margaret  of  Parma,  and  offering 
carte  blanche  as  to  terms,  if  he  might  only  be  allowed 
to  make  his  peace  with  government.^  It  was,  however, 
somewhat  late  in  the  day  for  the  "great  beggar"  to 
make  his  submission.     No  terms  were  accorded  him, 

1  Correspondance  de  Guillaume  le  Tacit.,  ii.  444-454. 

2  "  .  .  .  Brederode  ha  suplicado  de  ser  perdonado  y  embiado  h 
Monsieur  d'Egmont  carta  blanca."— MS.  Letter  of  Granvelle  to 
Alva,  Bibl.  de  Bourg. 


364  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

but  lie  was  allowed  by  tbe  duchess  to  enjoy  bis  revenues 
provisionally,  subject  to  the  king's  pleasure.  Upon  the 
25th  April  he  entertained  a  select  circle  of  friends  at 
his  hotel  in  Amsterdam,  and  then  embarked  at  mid- 
night for  Emden.  A  numerous  procession  of  his  ad- 
herents escorted  him  to  the  ship,  bearing  lighted  torches 
and  singing  bacchanalian  songs.  He  died  within  a  year 
afterward,  of  disappointment  and  hard  drinking,  at 
Castle  Hardenberg,  in  Germany,  after  all  his  fretting 
and  fury,  and  notwithstanding  his  vehement  protesta- 
tions to  die  a  poor  soldier  at  the  feet  of  Louis  of  Nassau.^ 
That  "good  chevalier  and  good  Christian,"  as  his 
brother  affectionately  called  him,  was  in  Germany,  gird- 
ing himself  for  the  manly  work  which  Providence  had 
destined  him  to  perform.  The  life  of  Brederode,  who 
had  engaged  in  the  early  struggle  perhaps  from  the 
frivolous  expectation  of  hearing  himself  called  Count  of 
Holland,  as  his  ancestors  had  been,  had  contributed 
nothing  to  the  cause  of  freedom,  nor  did  his  death  occa- 
sion regret.  His  disorderly  band  of  followers  dispersed 
in  every  direction  upon  the  departure  of  their  chief.  A 
vessel  in  which  Batenburg,  Galaina,  and  other  nobles, 
with  their  men-at-arms,  were  escaping  toward  a  Ger- 
man port,  was  carried  into  Harlingen,  while  those 
gentlemen,  overpowered  by  sleep  and  wassail,  were  un- 
aware of  their  danger,  and  delivered  over  to  Count  Meg- 
hen  by  the  treachery  of  their  pilot.  The  soldiers  were 
immediately  hanged.  The  noblemen  were  reserved  to 
grace  the  first  great  scaffold  which  Alva  was  to  erect 
upon  the  horse-market  in  Brussels.^ 

1  Bor,  iii.  168.     Hoofd,  iv.  135.     Vit.  Viglii,  51.     Compare  Bor, 
Hoofd,  ubi  sup. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS. 


1567]  DEATH   OF  BEEGHEN  365 

The  confederacy  was  entirely  broken  to  pieces.  Of 
the  chieftains  to  whom  the  people  had  been  accustomed 
to  look  for  support  and  encouragement,  some  had  rallied 
to  the  government,  some  were  in  exile,  some  were  in 
prison.  Montigny,  closely  watched  in  Spain,  was  virtu- 
ally a  captive,  pining  for  the  young  bride  to  whom  he 
had  been  wedded  amid  such  brilliant  festivities  but  a 
few  months  before  his  departure,  and  for  the  child  which 
was  never  to  look  upon  its  father's  face.i  His  colleague, 
Marquis  Berghen,  more  fortunate,  was  already  dead. 
The  excellent  Viglius  seized  the  opportunity  to  put  in  a 
good  word  for  Noircarmes,  who  had  been  grinding 
Tournay  in  the  dust  and  butchering  the  inhabitants  of 
Valenciennes.  "We  have  heard  of  Berghen's  death," 
wrote  the  president  to  his  faithful  Joachim.  "The 
Lord  of  Noircarmes,  who  has  been  his  substitute  in  the 
governorship  of  Hainault,  has  given  a  specimen  of 
what  he  can  do.  Although  I  have  no  private  intimacy 
with  that  nobleman,  I  cannot  help  embracing  him  with 
all  my  benevolence.  Therefore,  O  my  Hopper,  pray 
do  your  best  to  have  him  appointed  governor."  ^ 

With  the  departure  of  Orange  a  total  eclipse  seemed 
to  come  over  the  Netherlands.  The  country  was  abso- 
lutely helpless,  the  popular  heart  cold  with  apprehen- 
sion. All  persons  at  all  implicated  in  the  late  troubles, 
or  suspected  of  heresy,  fled  from  their  homes.  Fugitive 
soldiers  were  hunted  into  rivers,  cut  to  pieces  in  the 
fields,  hanged,  burned,  or  drowned  like  dogs,  without 
quarter,  and  without  remorse.  The  most  industrious 
and  valuable  part  of  the  population  left  the  land  in 

1  The  child  was  baptized  at  Tournay  on  the  1st  December,  1566 
(Pasquier  de  la  Barre  MS.,  f.  73). 

2  Foppens,  Supplement,  ii.  552. 


366  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

droves.  The  tide  swept  outward  witli  such  rapidity 
that  the  Netherlands  seemed  fast  becoming  the  desolate 
waste  which  they  had  been  before  the  Christian  era. 
Throughout  the  country  those  reformers  who  were  un- 
able to  effect  their  escape  betook  themselves  to  their  old 
lurking-places.  The  new  religion  was  banished  from 
aU  the  cities,  every  conventicle  was  broken  up  by  armed 
men,  the  preachers  and  leading  members  were  hanged, 
their  disciples  beaten  with  rods,  reduced  to  beggary,  or 
imprisoned,  even  if  they  sometimes  escaped  the  scaffold. 
An  incredible  number,  however,  were  executed  for  re- 
ligious causes.  Hardly  a  village  so  small,  says  the  Ant- 
werp chronicler,  but  that  it  could  furnish  one,  two,  or 
three  hundred  victims  to  the  executioner.^  The  new 
churches  were  leveled  to  the  ground,  and  out  of  their 
timbers  gallowses  were  constructed.^  It  was  thought  an 
ingenious  pleasantry  to  hang  the  reformers  upon  the 
beams  under  which  they  had  hoped  to  worship  God. 
The  property  of  the  fugitives  was  confiscated.  The 
beggars  in  name  became  beggars  in  reality.  Many  who 
felt  obliged  to  remain,  and  who  loved  their  possessions 
better  than  their  creed,  were  suddenly  converted  into 
the  most  zealous  of  Catholics.  Persons  who  had  for 
years  not  gone  to  mass  never  omitted  now  their  daUy 
and  nightly  visits  to  the  churches.^  Persons  who  had 
never  spoken  to  an  ecclesiastic  but  with  contumely  now 
could  not  eat  their  dinners  without  one  at  their  table.* 
Many  who  were  suspected  of  having  participated  in 
Calvinistic  rites  were  foremost  and  loudest  in  putting 
down  and  denouncing  all  forms  and  shows  of  the  Ref- 

1  Meteren,  ii.  f.  45. 

2  De  la  Barre  MS.,  96.     Hoofd,  iv.  138.     Strada,  vi.  278. 

3  Bor,  iii.  174.  *  Ibid. 


1567]  EDICT  OP  24TH  MAY  367 

ormation.  The  country  was  as  completely  "pacified," 
to  use  the  conqueror's  expression,  as  Gaul  had  been  by 
Caesar, 

The  regent  issued  a  fresh  edict  upon  the  24th  May,  to 
refresh  the  memories  of  those  who  might  have  forgotten 
previous  statutes,  which  were,  however,  not  calculated 
to  make  men  oblivious.  By  this  new  proclamation  all 
ministers  and  teachers  were  sentenced  to  the  gallows. 
All  persons  who  had  suffered  their  houses  to  be  used 
for  religious  purposes  were  sentenced  to  the  gallows. 
All  parents  or  masters  whose  children  or  servants  had 
attended  such  meetings  were  sentenced  to  the  gallows, 
while  the  children  and  servants  were  only  to  be  beaten 
with  rods.  All  people  who  sang  hymns  at  the  burial  of 
their  relations  were  sentenced  to  the  gallows.  Parents 
who  allowed  their  newly  born  children  to  be  baptized 
by  other  hands  than  those  of  the  Catholic  priest  were 
sentenced  to  the  gallows.  The  same  punishment  was 
denounced  against  the  persons  who  should  christen  the 
child  or  act  as  its  sponsors.  Schoolmasters  who  should 
teach  any  error  or  false  doctrine  were  likewise  to  be 
punished  with  death.  Those  who  infringed  the  statutes 
against  the  buying  and  selling  of  religious  books  and 
songs  were  to  receive  the  same  doom  after  the  first 
offense.  All  sneers  or  insults  against  priests  and  ec- 
clesiastics were  also  made  capital  crimes.  Vagabonds, 
fugitives,  apostates,  runaway  monks,  were  ordered  forth- 
with to  depart  from  every  city  on  pain  of  death.  In 
all  cases  confiscation  of  the  whole  property  of  the  crim- 
inal was  added  to  the  hanging.^ 

This  edict,  says  a  contemporary  Mstorian,  increased 
the  fear  of  those  professing  the  new  religion  to  such  an 
1  The  edict  is  published  in  Bor,  iii.  170,  171. 


368  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

extent  that  they  left  the  country  "  in  great  heaps."  ^  It 
became  necessary,  therefore,  to  issue  a  subsequent  proc- 
lamation forbidding  all  persons,  whether  foreigners  or 
natives,  to  leave  the  land  or  to  send  away  their  property, 
and  prohibiting  all  shipmasters,  wagoners,  and  other 
agents  of  travel  from  assisting  in  the  flight  of  such 
fugitives,  all  upon  pain  of  death.'-^ 

Yet  wiU  it  be  credited  that  the  edict  of  24th  May,  the 
pro^dsions  of  which  have  just  been  sketched,  actually 
excited  the  wrath  of  Philip  on  account  of  its  clemency  f 
He  wrote  to  the  duchess,  expressing  the  pain  and  dis- 
satisfaction which  he  felt  that  an  edict  so  indecent,  so 
illegal,  so  contrary  to  the  Christian  religion,  should 
have  been  pubhshed.  Nothing,  he  said,  could  offend  or 
distress  him  more  deeply  than  any  outrage  whatever, 
even  the  slightest  one,  offered  to  God  and  to  his  Roman 
Catholic  Church.  He  therefore  commanded  his  sister 
instantly  to  revoke  the  edict.^  One  might  almost  ima- 
gine from  reading  the  king's  letter  that  Philip  was  at 
last  appalled  at  the  horrors  committed  in  his  name. 
Alas !  he  was  only  indignant  that  heretics  had  been 
suffered  to  hang  who  ought  to  have  been  burned,  and 
that  a  few  narrow  and  almost  impossible  loopholes 
had  been  left  through  which  those  who  had  offended 
might  effect  their  escape. 

And  thus,  while  the  country  is  paralyzed  with  present 
and  expected  woe,  the  swiftly  advancing  trumpets  of 
the  Spanish  army  resound  from  beyond  the  Alps.  The 
curtain  is  falling  upon  the  prelude  to  the  great  tragedy 
which  the  prophetic  lips  of  Orange  had  foretold.  When 
it  is  again  lifted,  scenes  of  disaster  and  of  bloodshed,  bat- 

1  Bor,  iii.  171.  2  Ibid.,  iii.  175. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  550-552. 


1567]  WEATH  OF   PHILIP  369 

ties,  sieges,  executions,  deeds  of  unfaltering  but  valiant 
tyranny,  of  superhuman  and  successful  resistance,  of 
heroic  self-sacrifice,  fanatical  courage  and  insane  cruelty, 
both  in  the  cause  of  the  wrong  and  the  right,  will  b© 
revealed  in  awful  succession— a  spectacle  of  human 
energy,  human  suffering,  and  human  strength  to  suffer, 
such  as  has  not  often  been  displayed  upon  the  stage  of 
the  world's  events. 


VOL.  n.— 24 


PART  III 

ALVA 

1567-1573 


CHAPTER  I 

Continued  dissensions  in  the  Spanish  cabinet— Buy  Gomez  and 
Alva— Conquest  of  the  Netherlands  intrusted  to  the  duke— Birth, 
previous  career,  and  character  of  Alva— Organization  of  the  in- 
vading army— Its  march  to  the  provinces— Complaints  of  Duchess 
Margaret— Alva  receives  deputations  on  the  frontier— Interview 
between  the  duke  and  Egmont— Reception  of  Alva  by  the  Duchess 
of  Parma— Circular  letters  to  the  cities  requiring  their  accep- 
tance of  garrisons— Margaret's  secret  correspondence— Universal 
apprehension— Keys  of  the  great  cities  demanded  by  Alva— Secret 
plans  of  the  government,  arranged  before  the  duke's  departure- 
Arrest  of  Orange,  Egmont,  Horn,  and  others  determined  upon— 
Stealthy  course  of  the  government  toward  them— Infatuation  of 
Egmont— Warnings  addressed  to  him  by  De  Billy  and  others- 
Measures  to  entrap  Count  Horn— Banquet  of  the  grand  prior— 
The  grand  prior's  warning  to  Egmont— Evil  counsels  of  Noir- 
carmes- Arrests  of  Egmont,  Horn,  Bakkerzeel,  and  Straalen— 
Popular  consternation— Petulant  conduct  of  Duchess  Margaret — 
Characteristic  comments  of  Granvelle— His  secret  machinations 
and  disclaimers— Berghen  and  Montigny— Last  moments  of  Mar- 
quis Berghen— Perfidy  of  Ruy  Gomez— Establishment  of  the 
Blood-Council— Its  leading  features— Insidious  behavior  of  Vig- 
lius— Secret  correspondence,  concerning  the  president,  between 
Philip  and  Alva— Members  of  the  Blood-Coimcil- Portraits  of 
Vargas  and  Hessels— Mode  of  proceeding  adopted  by  the  council 
—Wholesale  executions— Despair  in  the  provinces— The  resig- 
nation of  Duchess  Margaret  accepted— Her  departure  from  the 
Netherlands— Renewed  civil  war  in  France— Death  of  Montmo- 
rency-Auxiliary  troops  sent  by  Alva  to  France— Erection  of 
Antwerp  citadel— Description  of  the  citadel. 

373 


374  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

The  armed  invasion  of  the  Netherlands  was  the  neces- 
sary consequence  of  all  which  had  gone  before.  That 
the  inevitable  result  had  been  so  long  deferred  lay  rather 
in  the  incomprehensible  tardiness  of  Philip's  character 
than  in  the  circumstances  of  the  case.  Never  did  a 
monarch  hold  so  steadfastly  to  a  deadly  purpose,  or 
proceed  so  languidly  and  with  so  much  circumvolution 
to  his  goal.  The  mask  of  benignity,  of  possible  clem- 
ency, was  now  thrown  off,  but  the  delusion  of  his  in- 
tended Adsit  to  the  provinces  was  still  maintained.  He 
assured  the  regent  that  he  should  be  governed  by  her 
advice,  and  as  she  had  made  all  needful  preparations  to 
receive  him  in  Zealand,  that  it  would  be  in  Zealand  he 
should  arrive.^ 

The  same  two  men  among  Philip's  advisers  were 
prominent  as  at  an  earlier  day— the  Prince  of  Eboli  and 
the  Duke  of  Alva.  They  still  represented  entirely  op- 
posite ideas,  and  in  character,  temper,  and  history  each 
was  the  reverse  of  the  other.  The  policy  of  the  prince 
was  pacific  and  temporizing,  that  of  the  duke  uncom- 
promising and  ferocious.  Ruy  Gomez  was  disposed  to 
prevent,  if  possible,  the  armed  mission  of  Alva,  and  he 
now  openly  counseled  the  king  to  fulfil  his  long-deferred 
promise  and  to  make  his  appearance  in  person  before  his 
rebellious  subjects.  The  jealousy  and  hatred  which  ex- 
isted between  the  prince  and  the  duke— between  the 
man  of  peace  and  the  man  of  wrath— were  constantly 
exploding,  even  in  the  presence  of  the  king.  The 
wrangling  in  the  council  was  incessant.  Determined, 
if  possible,  to  prevent  the  elevation  of  his  rival,  the 
favorite  was  even  for  a  moment  disposed  to  ask  for  the 
command  of  the  army  himself.  There  was  something 
1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  550, 


1567]  CONQUEST  INTRUSTED  TO  ALVA  375 

ludicrous  in  the  notion  that  a  man  whose  life  had  been 
pacific  and  who  trembled  at  the  noise  of  arms  should 
seek  to  supersede  the  terrible  Alva,  of  whom  his  eulo- 
gists asserted,  with  Castilian  exaggeration,  that  the  very- 
name  of  fear  inspired  him  with  horror.  But  there  was 
a  limit  beyond  which  the  influence  of  Anna  de  Mendoza 
and  her  husband  did  not  extend.  Philip  was  not  to  be 
driven  to  the  Netherlands  against  his  will,  nor  to  be 
prevented  from  assigning  the  command  of  the  army  to 
the  most  appropriate  man  in  Europe  for  his  purpose.^ 

It  was  determined  at  last  that  the  Netherland  heresy 
should  be  conquered  by  force  of  arms.  The  invasion 
resembled  both  a  crusade  against  the  infidel  and  a  trea- 
sure-hunting foray  into  the  auriferous  Indies,  achieve- 
ments by  which  Spanish  chivalry  had  so  often  illustrated 
itself.  The  banner  of  the  cross  was  to  be  replanted 
upon  the  conquered  battlements  of  three  hundred  infidel 
cities,  and  a  torrent  of  wealth,  richer  than  ever  flowed 
from  Mexican  or  Peruvian  mines,  was  to  flow  into  the 
royal  treasury  from  the  perennial  fountains  of  confisca- 
tion. Who  so  fit  to  be  the  Tancred  and  the  Pizarro  of 
this  bicolored  expedition  as  the  Duke  of  Alva,  the  man 
who  had  been  devoted  from  his  earliest  childhood,  and 
from  his  father's  grave,  to  hostility  against  unbelievers, 
and  who  had  prophesied  that  treasure  would  flow  in  a 
stream  a  yard  deep  from  the  Netherlands  as  soon  as 
the  heretics  began  to  meet  with  their  deserts  ?  An  army 
of  chosen  troops  was  forthwith  collected,  by  taking  the 
four  legions,  or  terzios,  of  Naples,  Sicily,  Sardinia,  and 
Lombardy,  and  filling  their  places  in  Italy  by  fresh 
levies.    About  ten  thousand  picked  and  veteran  soldiers 

1  Cabrera,  1.  7,  c.  vii.  p.  414.  Strada,  i.  282,  283.  Hist,  du 
Due  d'Albe,  ii.  155,  242. 


376  THE  EISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

were  thus  obtained,  of  which  the  Duke  of  Alva  was  ap- 
pointed general-in-chief.i 

Fernando  Alvarez  de  Toledo,  Duke  of  Alva,  was 
now  in  his  sixtieth  year.  He  was  the  most  successful 
and  experienced  general  of  Spain  or  of  Europe.  No 
man  had  studied  more  deeply  or  practised  more  con- 
stantly the  military  science.  In  the  most  important  of 
all  arts  at  that  epoch  he  was  the  most  consummate 
artist.  In  the  only  honorable  profession  of  the  age  he 
was  the  most  thorough  and  the  most  pedantic  professor. 
Since  the  days  of  Demetrius  Poliorcetes  no  man  had 
besieged  so  many  cities.  Since  the  days  of  Fabius 
Cunctator  no  general  had  avoided  so  many  battles,  and 
no  soldier,  courageous  as  he  was,  ever  attained  to  a 
more  sublime  indifference  to  calumny  or  depreciation. 
Having  proved  in  his  boyhood  at  Fontarabia,  and  in 
his  maturity  at  Miihlberg,  that  he  could  exhibit  heroism 
and  headlong  courage  when  necessary,  he  could  afford 
to  look  with  contempt  upon  the  witless  gibes  which  his 
enemies  had  occasionally  perpetrated  at  his  expense. 
Conscious  of  holding  his  armies  in  his  hand  by  the 
power  of  an  unrivaled  discipline  and  the  magic  of  a 
name  illustrated  by  a  hundred  triumphs,  he  could  bear 
with  patience  and  benevolence  the  murmurs  of  his 
soldiers  when  their  battles  were  denied  them. 

He  was  born  in  1508,  of  a  family  which  boasted  im- 
perial descent.  A  Palaeologus,  brother  of  a  Byzantine 
emperor,  had  conquered  the  city  of  Toledo  and  trans- 
mitted its  appellation  as  a  family  name.^    The  father  of 

1  Brandt,  Hist,  der  Ref.,  i.  496.  De  Thou,  v.  1.  41,  pp.  289,  290. 
Bern"  de  Mendoza,  Guerras  de  los  payses  baxos,  etc.,  20,  21,  29. 

2  De  la  Roca,  Resultas  de  la  Vida  de  Don  F.  A.  de  T.  Duque 
de  Alva,  p.  3.     Hist,  du  Due  d'Albe,  i.  5. 


1567]  ALVA'S  CAREER  377 

Fernando,  Don  Garcia,  had  been  slain  on  the  isle  of 
Gerbes,  in  battle  with  the  Moors,  when  his  son  was  but 
four  years  of  age.^  The  child  was  brought  up  by  his 
grandfather,  Don  Frederick,  and  trained  from  his  tender- 
est  infancy  to  arms.  Hatred  to  the  infidel,  and  a  de- 
termination to  avenge  his  father's  blood,  crying  to  him 
from  a  foreign  grave,  were  the  earliest  of  his  instincts. 
As  a  youth  he  was  distinguished  for  his  prowess.  His 
maiden  sword  was  fleshed  at  Fontarabia,  where,  although 
but  sixteen  years  of  age,  he  was  considered,  by  his  con- 
stancy in  hardship,  by  his  brilliant  and  desperate  cour- 
age, and  by  the  example  of  military  discipline  which  he 
afforded  to  the  troops,  to  have  contributed  in  no  small 
degree  to  the  success  of  the  Spanish  arms. 

In  1530  he  accompanied  the  emperor  in  his  campaign 
against  the  Turk.  Charles,  instinctively  recognizing 
the  merit  of  the  youth  who  was  destined  to  be  the  life- 
long companion  of  his  toils  and  glories,  distinguished 
him  with  his  favor  at  the  opening  of  his  career.  Young, 
brave,  and  enthusiastic,  Fernando  de  Toledo  at  this 
period  was  as  interesting  a  hero  as  ever  illustrated  the 
pages  of  Castilian  romance.  His  mad  ride  from  Hun- 
gary to  Spain  and  back  again,  accomplished  in  seventeen 
days,  for  the  sake  of  a  brief  visit  to  his  newly  married 
wife,  is  not  the  least  attractive  episode  in  the  history  of 
an  existence  which  was  destined  to  be  so  dark  and  san- 
guinary. In  1535  he  accompanied  the  emperor  on  his 
memorable  expedition  to  Tunis.  In  1546  and  1547  he 
was  generalissimo  in  the  war  against  the  Smalkaldic 
League.  His  most  brilliant  feat  of  arms— perhaps  the 
most  brilliant  exploit  of  the  emperor's  reign— was  the 
passage  of  the  Elbe  and  the  battle  of  Miihlberg,  accom- 

1  Hist,  du  Due  d'Albe,  i.  8. 


378  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

plislied  in  spite  of  Maximilian's  bitter  and  violent  re- 
proaches and  the  tremendous  possibilities  of  a  defeat.^ 
That  battle  had  finished  the  war.  The  gigantic  and 
magnanimous  John  Frederick,  surprised  at  his  devotions 
in  the  church,  fled  in  dismay,  leaving  his  boots  behind 
him,  which  for  their  superhuman  size  were  ridiculously 
said  afterward  to  be  treasured  among  the  trophies  of 
the  Toledo  house.^  The  rout  was  total,  "  I  came,  I 
saw,  and  God  conquered,"  said  the  emperor,  in  pious 
parody  of  his  immortal  predecessor's  epigram,  Max- 
imilian, with  a  thousand  apologies  for  his  previous 
insults,  embraced  the  heroic  Don  Fernando  over  and 
over  again,  as,  arrayed  in  a  plain  suit  of  blue  armor, 
unadorned  save  with  streaks  of  his  enemies'  blood,  he 
returned  from  pursuit  of  the  fugitives.  So  complete 
and  so  sudden  was  the  victory  that  it  was  found  impos- 
sible to  account  for  it,  save  on  the  ground  of  miraculous 
interposition.  Like  Joshua  in  the  vale  of  Ajalon,  Don 
Fernando  was  supposed  to  have  commanded  the  sun 
to  stand  still  for  a  season,  and  to  have  been  obeyed. 
Otherwise,  how  could  the  passage  of  the  river,  which 
was  only  concluded  at  six  in  the  evening,  and  the  com- 
plete overthrow  of  the  Protestant  forces,  have  aU  been 
accomplished  within  the  narrow  space  of  an  April  twi- 

1  Hist,  du  Due  d'Albe,  liv.  i,  c,  vii,     De  Thou,  liv.  iv, 

2  Hist,  du  Due  d'Albe,  i,  274.  Brant6me,  Horn.  Elust.,  etc.  (ch. 
v.),  says  that  one  of  the  boots  was  "large  enough  to  hold  a  eamp- 
bedstead"  (p.  11).  I  insert  the  anecdote  only  as  a  specimen  of 
the  manner  in  which  similar  absurdities,  both  of  gi-eat  and  of  little 
consequence,  are  perpetuated  by  WTiters  in  every  land  and  age. 
The  armor  of  the  noble-hearted  and  unfortunate  John  Frederick 
may  still  be  seen  in  Dresden.  Its  size  indicates  a  man  very  much 
above  the  average  height,  while  the  external  length  of  the  iron 
shoe,  on  the  contrary,  is  less  than  eleven  inches. 


1567]  MtJHLBERa  379 

light  ?  The  reply  of  the  duke  to  Henry  II.  of  France, 
who  questioned  him  subsequently  upon  the  subject,  is 
well  known :  "  Your  Majesty,  I  was  too  much  occupied 
that  evening  with  what  was  taking  place  on  the  earth 
beneath  to  pay  much  heed  to  the  evolutions  of  the 
heavenly  bodies."  Spared  as  he  had  been  by  his  good 
fortune  from  taking  any  part  in  the  Algerine  expedi- 
tion, or  in  witnessing  the  ignominious  retreat  from 
Innsbruck,  he  was  obliged  to  submit  to  the  intercalation 
of  the  disastrous  siege  of  Metz  in  the  long  history  of 
his  successes.  Doing  the  duty  of  a  field-marshal  and  a 
sentinel,  supporting  his  army  by  his  firmness  and  his 
discipline  when  nothing  else  could  have  supported  them, 
he  was  at  last  enabled,  after  half  the  hundred  thousand 
men  with  whom  Charles  had  begun  the  siege  had  been 
sacrificed,  to  induce  his  imperial  master  to  raise  the 
siege  before  the  remaining  fifty  thousand  had  been 
frozen  or  starved  to  death.^ 

The  culminating  career  of  Alva  seemed  to  have  closed 
in  the  mist  which  gathered  around  the  setting  star  of 
the  empire.  Having  accompanied  Philip  to  England  in 
1554  on  his  matrimonial  expedition,  he  was  destined  in 
the  following  years,  as  viceroy  and  generalissimo  of 
Italy,  to  be  placed  in  a  series  of  false  positions.  A 
great  captain  engaged  in  a  little  war,  the  champion  of 
the  cross  in  arms  against  the  successor  of  St.  Peter,  he 
had  extricated  himself  at  last  with  his  usual  adroitness, 
but  with  very  little  glory.^  To  him  had  been  allotted 
the  mortification,  to  another  the  triumph.  The  luster 
of  his  own  name  seemed  to  sink  in  the  ocean,  while  that 

1  Hist,  du  Due  d'Albe,  i.  272-283,  liv.  iii.  chaps.  21-24. 

2  Ibid.,  liv.  iv.  et  v.  De  Thou,  liv.  xviii.  De  la  Eoca,  Eesultas, 
etc.,  68-72. 


880  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

of  a  hated  rival,  with  new-spangled  ore,  suddenly 
"flamed  in  the  forehead  of  the  morning  sky."  While 
he  had  been  paltering  with  a  dotard,  whom  he  was  for- 
bidden to  crush,  Egmont  had  struck  down  the  chosen 
troops  of  France  and  conquered  her  most  illustrious 
commanders.  Here  was  the  unpardonable  crime  which 
could  only  be  expiated  by  the  blood  of  the  victor.  Un- 
fortunately for  his  rival,  the  time  was  now  approaching 
when  the  long-deferred  revenge  was  to  be  satisfied. 

On  the  whole,  the  Duke  of  Alva  was  inferior  to  no 
general  of  his  age.  As  a  disciplinarian  he  was  foremost 
in  Spain,  perhaps  in  Europe.  A  spendthrift  of  time, 
he  was  an  economist  of  blood,  and  this  was,  perhaps,  in 
the  eye  of  humanity,  his  principal  virtue.  "  Time  and 
myself  are  two,"  was  a  frequent  observation  of  Philip, 
and  his  favorite  general  considered  the  maxim  as  appli- 
cable to  war  as  to  polities.  Such  were  his  qualities  as  a 
military  commander.  As  a  statesman  he  had  neither 
experience  nor  talent.  As  a  man  his  character  was 
simple.  He  did  not  combine  a  great  variety  of  vices, 
but  those  which  he  had  were  colossal,  and  he  possessed 
no  virtues.  He  was  neither  lustful  nor  intemperate, 
but  his  professed  eulogists  admitted  his  enormous  ava- 
rice, while  the  world  has  agreed  that  such  an  amount  of 
stealth  and  ferocity,  of  patient  vindictiveness  and  uni- 
versal bloodthirstiness,  was  never  found  in  a  savage 
beast  of  the  forest,  and  but  rarely  in  a  human  bosom. 
His  history  was  now  to  show  that  his  previous  thrift  of 
human  life  was  not  derived  from  any  love  of  his  kind. 
Personally  he  was  stern  and  overbearing.  As  difficult 
of  access  as  Philip  himself,  he  was  even  more  haughty 
to  those  who  were  admitted  to  his  presence.  He  ad- 
dressed every  one  with  the  deprecating  second  person 


1567]  CHARACTERISTICS  381 

plural.^  Possessing  the  right  of  being  covered  in  the 
presence  of  the  Spanish  monarch,  he  had  been  with  diffi- 
culty brought  to  renounce  it  before  the  German  em- 
peror.2  He  was  of  an  illustrious  family,  but  his 
territorial  possessions  were  not  extensive.  His  duchy 
was  a  small  one,  furnishing  him  with  not  more  than 
fourteen  thousand  crowns  of  annual  income,  and  with 
four  hundred  soldiers.^  He  had,  however,  been  a  thrifty 
financier  all  his  life,  never  having  been  without  a  hand- 
some sum  of  ready  money  at  interest.  Ten  years  before 
his  arrival  in  the  Netherlands  he  was  supposed  to  have 
already  increased  his  income  to  forty  thousand  a  year 
by  the  proceeds  of  his  investments  at  Antwerp.*  As 
already  intimated,  his  military  character  was  sometimes 
profoundly  misunderstood.  He  was  often  considered 
rather  a  pedantic  than  a  practical  commander,  more 
capable  to  discourse  of  battles  than  to  gain  them.  Not- 
withstanding that  his  long  life  had  been  an  almost  un- 
broken campaign,  the  ridiculous  accusation  of  timidity 
was  frequently  made  against  him.^  A  gentleman  at  the 
court  of  the  Emperor  Charles  once  addressed  a  letter  to 
the  duke  with  the  title  of  ''  General  of  his  Majesty's 

1  V.  d.  Vynckt,  ii.  41.  2  i^id.,  ii.  42. 

3  Badovaro  MS. 

*  "  Ha  d'entrata  come  Duca  ^  seudi,  ma  fino  a  ^  per  danari  in- 
vestiti  in  Anversa  et  se  stima  che  egli  si  trova  sempre  buona 
somma  di  contanti."— Ibid. 

5  "  Ha  visto  et  maneggiato  molte  guerre  et  per  la  prattica  che 
ha  discorre  meglio  che  io  habbia  mai  conosciuto  in  quella  corte — 
ma  le  due  oppositioni  I'una  che  faeci  le  provisioni  sue  con  troppo 
resei-vato  et  cauto  et  quasi  timido  nell'  imprese." — Suriano  MS. 

Badovaro  is  much  more  severe  :  "  nella  guerra  mostra  timidity 
et  poca  intelligenza  et  poeo  stimato  nella  corte  come  per  persona 
avara,  superba  et  ambitiosa;  adulatore  et  invido  molto  et  di 
puochissimo  cuore." 


382  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

armies  in  the  duchy  of  Milan  in  time  of  peace,  and 
majordomo  of  the  household  in  the  time  of  war."  ^  It 
was  said  that  the  lesson  did  the  duke  good,  but  that  he 
rewarded  very  badly  the  nobleman  who  gave  it,  having 
subsequently  caused  his  head  to  be  taken  off.^  In  gen- 
eral, however,  Alva  manifested  a  philosophical  contempt 
for  the  opinions  expressed  concerning  his  military  fame, 
and  was  especially  disdainful  of  criticism  expressed  by 
his  own  soldiers.  "  Recollect,"  said  he,  at  a  little  later 
period,  to  Don  John  of  Austria,  "  that  the  first  foes  with 
whom  one  has  to  contend  are  one's  own  troops,  with 
their  clamors  for  an  engagement  at  this  moment,  and 
their  murmurs  about  results  at  another;  with  their  'I 
thought  that  the  battle  should  be  fought,'  or,  '  It  was 
my  opinion  that  the  occasion  ought  not  to  be  lost.' 
Your  Highness  will  have  opportunity  enough  to  display 
valor,  and  will  never  be  weak  enough  to  be  conquered 
by  the  babble  of  soldiers."  ^ 

In  person  he  was  tall,  thin,  erect,  with  a  small  head,  a 
long  visage,  lean  yellow  cheeks,  dark  twinkling  eyes,  adust 
complexion,  black  bristling  hair,  and  a  long  sable-silvered 
beard,  descending  in  two  waving  streams  upon  his  breast.* 

1  This  anecdote  is  attributed  by  Dom  I'Evesque  and  by  M. 
Gachard  to  Badovaro.  It  is,  however,  not  to  be  found  in  the 
copy  of  his  MS.  in  the  Biblioth^que  de  Bourgogne. 

2  Dom  I'Evesque,  M6m.  de  Granvelle,  i.  26  sqq.  The  Benedic- 
tine does  not  further  indicate  the  author  of  the  pleasantry.  One 
is  disposed  to  imagine  it  to  have  been  Egmont.  Nevertheless,  the 
duke  caused  the  heads  of  so  many  gentlemen  to  be  taken  off  that 
the  description  is  sufficiently  vague. 

3  Documentos  Ineditos  para  la  Historia  de  Espana,  iii.  273-283. 
*  "Di    persona    grande,    magra,    piccola    testa,    coUerico    et 

adusto."— Badovaro  MS. 

There  is  a  very  good  contemporary  portrait  of  the  duke,  by  Ba- 


1567]  PORTRAIT  OF  AN  ARMY  383 

Such  being  the  design,  the  machinery  was  well  selected. 
The  best  man  in  Europe  to  lead  the  invading  force  was 
placed  at  the  head  of  ten  thousand  picked  veterans. 
The  privates  in  this  exquisite  little  army,^  said  the  enthu- 
siastic connoisseur  Brantome,  who  traveled  post  into 
Lorraine  expressly  to  see  them  on  their  march,  all  wore 
engraved  or  gilded  armor,  and  were  in  every  respect 
equipped  like  captains.  They  were  the  first  who  carried 
muskets,  a  weapon  which  very  much  astonished  the 
Flemings  when  it  first  rattled  in  their  ears.  The  muske- 
teers, he  observed,  might  have  been  mistaken  for  princes, 
with  such  agreeable  and  graceful  arrogance  did  they 
present  themselves.  Each  was  attended  by  his  servant 
or  esquire,  who  carried  his  piece  for  hitn,  except  in  battle, 
and  all  were  treated  with  extreme  deference  by  the  rest 
of  the  army,  as  if  they  had  been  officers.^  The  four 
regiments  of  Lombardy,  Sardinia,  Sicily,  and  Naples 
composed  a  total  of  not  quite  nine  thousand  of  the  best 
foot-soldiers  in  Europe.  They  were  commanded  respec- 
tively by  Don  Sancho  de  Lodrono,  Don  Gonzalo  de 
Bracamonte,  Julien  Romero,  and  Alfonso  de  Ulloa,  all 
distinguished  and  experienced  generals.^  The  cavalry, 
amounting  to  about  twelve  hundred,  was  under  the  com- 
mand of  the  natural  son  of  the  duke,  Don  Fernando 
de  Toledo,  Prior  of  the  Knights  of  St.  John.  Chiapin 
Vitelli,  Marquis  of  Cetona,  who  had  served  the  king  in 
many  a  campaign,   was  appointed  marechal-de-camp, 

rends,  in  the  royal  gallery  at  Amsterdam,  which  accords  very  ex- 
actly with  the  descriptions  preserved  concerning  his  person. 

1  "Gentilie  et  gaillarde  arm6e." 

2  Brantdme,  Grands  Capitaines  Estrangers,  etc.  (us&  75)  (Due 
d'Albe). 

s  Mendoza,  Guerras  de  los  payses  "baxos,  fol.  20,  21,  29,  30. 


384  THE  RISE  OF   THE   DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

and  Gabriel  Cerbelloni  was  placed  in  command  of  the 
artillery.  On  the  way  the  duke  received,  as  a  present 
from  the  Duke  of  Savoy,  the  services  of  the  distinguished 
engineer  Pacheco,  or  Paciotti/  whose  name  was  to  be 
associated  with  the  most  celebrated  citadel  of  the  Neth- 
erlands, and  whose  dreadful  fate  was  to  be  contempora- 
neous with  the  earliest  successes  of  the  liberal  party, 

"With  an  army  thus  perfect,  on  a  small  scale,  in  all 
its  departments,  and  furnished,  in  addition,  with  a  force 
of  two  thousand  prostitutes,  as  regularly  enrolled,  disci- 
plined, and  distributed  ^  as  the  cavalry  or  the  artillery,  the 
duke  embarked  upon  his  momentous  enterprise  on  the 
10th  of  May  at  Cartagena.  Thirty-seven  galleys,  under 
command  of  Prince  Andrea  Doria,  brought  the  principal 
part  of  the  force  to  Genoa,  the  duke  being  delayed  a  few 
days  at  Nice  by  an  attack  of  fever.  On  the  2d  of  June 
the  army  was  mustered  at  Alexandria  de  Palla,  and 
ordered  to  rendezvous  again  at  San  Ambrosio,  at  the  foot 
of  the  Alps.  It  was  then  directed  to  make  its  way  over 
Mont  Cenis  and  through  Savoy,  Burgundy,  and  Lor- 
raine, by  a  regularly  arranged  triple  movement.  The 
second  division  was  each  night  to  encamp  on  the  spot 

1  Hoofd,  iv.  148. 

2  Ibid.  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  565.  "On  dit  qu'ils 
ont  plus  de  deux  milles  putaines  avecques  eux,  tellement  que  nous 
ne  serons  en  faulte  des  putaines  aveeq  ceulx  que  nous  avons." — 
Lett,  de  Jean  de  Homes  a  Arnoul  Munten. 

Brantome  particularly  commends  the  organization  of  this  de- 
partment. "De  plus  il  y  avoit  quatre  cens  courtezanes  a  cheval, 
belles  et  braves  comme  princesses,  et  huit  cens  a  pied,  hien  a  point 
atissi."—Yie  des  Grands  Hommes,  etc.  (usa  p.  80)  (Due  d'Albe). 

Such  was  the  moral  physiognomy  of  the  army  which  came  to 
enforce  the  high  religious  purposes  of  Philip.  In  such  infamous 
shape  was  the  will  of  God  supposed  to  manifest  itself  before  the 
eyes  of  the  heretics  in  the  Netherlands. 


1567]  THE  MAECH  385 

which  had  been  occupied  upon  the  previous  night  by  the 
vanguard,  and  the  rear  was  to  place  itself  on  the  follow- 
ing night  in  the  camp  of  the  corps  de  bataille.^  Thus 
coiling  itself  along  almost  in  a  single  line  by  slow  and 
serpentine  windings,  with  a  deliberate,  deadly,  venom- 
ous purpose,  this  army,  which  was  to  be  the  instrument 
of  Philip's  long-deferred  vengeance,  stole  through  nar- 
row mountain-pass  and  tangled  forest.  So  close  and 
intricate  were  many  of  the  defiles  through  which  the 
journey  led  them  ^  that,  had  one  tithe  of  the  treason  which 
they  came  to  punish  ever  existed,  save  in  the  diseased 
imagination  of  their  monarch,  not  one  man  would  have 
been  left  to  tell  the  tale.  Egmont,  had  he  really  been 
the  traitor  and  the  conspirator  he  was  assumed  to  be, 
might  have  easily  organized  the  means  of  cutting  off 
the  troops  before  they  could  have  effected  their  entrance 
into  the  country  which  they  had  doomed  to  destruction. 
His  military  experience,  his  quahfications  for  a  daring 
stroke,  his  great  popularity,  and  the  intense  hatred  en- 
tertained for  Alva,  would  have  furnished  him  with  a 
sufficient  machinery  for  the  purpose. 

Twelve  days'  march  carried  the  army  through  Bur- 
gundy, twelve  more  through  Lorraine.  During  the 
whole  of  the  joui-ney  they  were  closely  accompanied  by 
a  force  of  cavalry  and  infantry,  ordered  upon  this  service 
by  the  King  of  France,  who,  for  fear  of  exciting  a  fresh 
Huguenot  demonstration,  had  refused  the  Spaniards  a 
passage  through  his  dominions.  This  reconnoitering 
army  kept  pace  with  them  like  their  shadow,  and 
watched  all  their  movements.  A  force  of  six  thousand 
Swiss,  equally  alarmed  and  uneasy  at  the  progress  of  the 
troops,  hovered  likewise  about  their  flanks,  without, 
1  B.  de  Mendoza,  30.  2  ibid.,  30,  31. 

VOL.  II.  —25 


386  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

however,  offering  any  impediment  to  their  advance. 
Before  the  middle  of  August  they  had  reached  Thion- 
ville,  on  the  Luxemburg  frontier,  having  on  the  last  day 
marched  a  distance  of  two  leagues  through  a  forest 
which  seemed  expressly  arranged  to  allow  a  small  de- 
fensive force  to  embarrass  and  destroy  an  invading 
army.  No  opposition,  however,  was  attempted,  and  the 
Spanish  soldiers  encamped  at  last  within  the  territory  of 
the  Netherlands,  having  accomplished  their  adventurous 
journey  in  entire  safety  and  under  perfect  discipline.^ 

The  duchess  had  in  her  secret  letters  to  Phihp  con- 
tinued to  express  her  disapprobation  of  the  enterprise 
thus  committed  to  Alva.  She  had  bitterly  complained 
that  now,  when  the  country  had  been  pacified  by  her 
efforts,  another  should  be  sent  to  reap  all  the  glory,  or 
perhaps  to  undo  aU  that  she  had  so  painfully  and  so  suc- 
cessfully done.  She  stated  to  her  brother,  in  most  un- 
equivocal language,  that  the  name  of  Alva  was  odious 
enough  to  make  the  whole  Spanish  nation  detested  in 
the  Netherlands.  She  could  find  no  language  sufficiently 
strong  to  express  her  surprise  that  the  king  should  have 
decided  upon  a  measure  likely  to  be  attended  with  such 
fatal  consequences  without  consulting  her  on  the  subject, 
and  in  opposition  to  what  had  been  her  uniform  advice. 
She  also  wrote  personally  to  Alva,  imploring,  command- 
ing, and  threatening,  but  with  equally  ill  success.^  The 
duke  knew  too  well  who  was  sovereign  of  the  Netherlands 
now,  his  master's  sister  or  himself.  As  to  the  effects  of 
his  armed  invasion  upon  the  temper  of  the  provinces,  he 
was  supremely  indifferent.     He  came  as  a  conqueror,  not 

1  B.  de  Mendoza,  30,  31. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  546,  556,  etc.  Strada,  i. 
?89.     Hoofd,  iv.  148.     Strada,  i.  292, 


1567]  EGMONT'S  MEETING  WITH  ALVA  387 

as  a  mediator.  "  I  have  tamed  people  of  iron  in  my 
day,"  said  he,  contemptuously ;  "  shall  I  not  easHy  crush 
these  men  of  butter  ? "  ^ 

At  Thionville  he  was,  however,  officially  waited  upon 
by  Berlaymont  and  Noii'carmes,  on  the  part  of  the  re- 
gent. He  at  this  point,  moreover,  began  to  receive  dep- 
utations from  various  cities,  bidding  him  a  hoUow  and 
trembling  welcome,  and  deprecating  his  displeasure  for 
anything  in  the  past  which  might  seem  offensive.  To 
all  such  embassies  he  replied  in  vague  and  conventional 
language,  saying,  however,  to  his  confidential  atten- 
dants, "I  am  here— so  much  is  certain;  whether  I  am 
welcome  or  not  is  to  me  a  matter  of  little  consequence."  ^ 
At  Tirlemont,  on  the  22d  August,  he  was  met  by 
Count  Egmont,  who  had  ridden  forth  from  Brussels  to 
show  him  a  becoming  respect  as  the  representative  of 
his  sovereign.  The  count  was  accompanied  by  several 
other  noblemen,  and  brought  to  the  duke  a  present  of 
several  beautiful  horses.^  Alva  received  him,  however, 
but  coldly,  for  he  was  unable  at  first  to  adjust  the  mask 
to  his  countenance  as  adroitly  as  was  necessary.  '^  Be- 
hold the  greatest  of  all  the  heretics !  "  he  observed  to  his 
attendants,  as  soon  as  the  nobleman's  presence  was  an- 
nounced, and  in  a  voice  loud  enough  for  him  to  hear.* 
Even  after  they  had  exchanged  salutations,  he  ad- 
dressed several  remarks  to  him  in  a  half-jesting,  half- 
biting  tone,  saying,  among  other  things,  that  his  count- 
ship  might  have  spared  him  the  trouble  of  making  this 

1  Hoofd,  iv.  148. 

2  Bor,  iv.  182. 

3  MS.,  12-941,  Bib.  de  Bourg.  Troubles  des  Pays-Bas  de  Jean 
de  Grutere,  Extraits  par  M.  Emile  Gachet  (Ist  Aotit,  1847). 

*  Bor,  iv.  182.     Hoofd,  iv.  150. 


388  THE  EISE  OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

long  journey  in  his  old  age.^  There  were  other  observa- 
tions in  a  similar  strain  which  might  have  well  aroused 
the  suspicion  of  any  man  not  determined,  like  Egmont, 
to  continue  blind  and  deaf.  After  a  brief  interval,  how- 
ever, Alva  seems  to  have  commanded  himself.  He 
passed  his  arm  lovingly  over  that  stately  neck,^  which  he 
had  already  devoted  to  the  block,  and — the  count  having 
resolved  beforehand  to  place  himself,  if  possible,  upon 
amicable  terms  with  the  new  viceroy — the  two  rode  along 
side  by  side  in  friendly  conversation,  followed  by  the 
regiment  of  infantry  and  three  companies  of  light  horse 
which  belonged  to  the  duke's  immediate  command.^ 
Alva,  still  attended  by  Egmont,  rode  soon  afterward 
through  the  Louvain  Gate  into  Brussels,  where  they 
separated  for  a  season.  Lodgings  had  been  taken  for 
the  duke  at  the  house  of  a  certain  Madame  de  Jasse,* 
in  the  neighborhood  of  Egmont's  palace.  Leaving  here 
the  principal  portion  of  his  attendants,  the  captain-gen- 
eral, without  alighting,  forthwith  proceeded  to  the  pal- 
ace to  pay  his  respects  to  the  Duchess  of  Parma. 

For  three  days  the  regent  had  been  deliberating  with 
her  council  as  to  the  propriety  of  declining  any  visit 
from  the  man  whose  presence  she  justly  considered  a 
disgrace  and  an  insult  to  herself.^  This  being  the  re- 
ward of  her  eight  years'  devotion  to  her  brother's  com- 
mands, to  be  superseded  by  a  subject,  and  one,  too,  who 
came  to  carry  out  a  policy  which  she  had  urgently  dep- 
recated, it  could  hardly  be  expected  of  the  emperor's 
daughter  that  she  should  graciously  submit  to  the  indig- 

1  Jean  de  Grutere  MS.,  Extraits  de  M.  Gachet. 

2  Hoofd,  iv.  150. 

3  Jean  de  Gnitere  MS. ,  Extraits  de  M.  Gachet.  *  Ibid. 
5  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  631. 


1567]  A  CHILLING  EECEPTION  389 

nity  and  receive  her  successor  with  a  smiling  counte- 
nance. In  consequence,  however,  of  the  submissive 
language  with  which  the  duke  had  addressed  her  in  his 
recent  communications,  offering,  with  true  Castilian 
but  empty  courtesy,  to  place  his  guards,  his  army,  and 
himself  at  her  feet,  she  had  consented  to  receive  his 
visit  with  or  without  his  attendants.^ 

On  his  appearance  in  the  courtyard,  a  scene  of  violent 
altercation  and  almost  of  bloodshed  took  place  between 
his  body-guard  and  the  archers  of  the  regent's  house- 
hold, who  were  at  last,  with  difficulty,  persuaded  to  allow 
the  mercenaries  of  the  hated  captain-general  to  pass.^ 
Presenting  himself  at  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
after  these  not  very  satisfactory  preliminaries,  in  the 
bedchamber  of  the  duchess,  where  it  was  her  habit  to 
grant  confidential  audiences,  he  met,  as  might  easily  be 
supposed,  with  a  chilling  reception.  The  duchess,  stand- 
ing motionless  in  the  center  of  the  apartment,  attended 
by  Berlaymont,  the  Duke  of  Aerschot,  and  Count  Eg- 
mont,  acknowledged  his  salutations  with  calm  severity. 
Neither  she  nor  any  one  of  her  attendants  advanced  a 
step  to  meet  him.  The  duke  took  off  his  hat,  but  she, 
calmly  recognizing  his  right  as  a  Spanish  grandee,  in- 
sisted upon  his  remaining  covered.  A  stiff  and  formal 
conversation  of  half  an  hour's  duration  then  ensued,  aU 
parties  remaining  upon  their  feet.^  The  duke,  although 
respectful,  found  it  difficult  to  conceal  his  indignation 
and  his  haughty  sense  of  approaching  triumph.  Marga- 
ret was  cold,  stately,  and  forbidding,  disguising  her  rage 
and  her  mortification  under  a  veil  of  imperial  pride.* 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  631. 

2  Ibid.  3  Ibid. 
*  Strada,  i.  297. 


390  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

Alva,  in  a  letter  to  Philip  describing  the  interview,  as- 
sured his  Majesty  that  he  had  treated  the  duchess  with 
as  much  deference  as  he  could  have  shown  to  the  queen,^ 
but  it  is  probable,  from  other  contemporaneous  accounts, 
that  an  ill-disguised  and  even  angry  arrogance  was  at 
times  very  visible  in  his  demeanor.  The  state  council 
had  advised  the  duchess  against  receiving  him  until  he 
had  duly  exhibited  his  powers.  This  ceremony  had  been 
waived,  but  upon  being  questioned  by  the  duchess  at  this 
interview  as  to  their  nature  and  extent,  he  is  reported  to 
have  coolly  answered  that  he  really  did  not  exactly  re- 
member, but  that  he  would  look  them  over  and  send  her 
information  at  his  earliest  convenience.^ 

The  next  day,  however,  his  commission  was  duly  ex- 
hibited. In  this  document,  which  bore  date  31st  Janu- 
ary, 1567,  Philip  appointed  him  to  be  captain-general 
"in  correspondence  with  his  Majesty's  dear  sister  of 
Parma,  who  was  occupied  with  other  matters  belonging 
to  the  government,"  begged  the  duchess  to  cooperate 
with  him  and  to  command  obedience  for  him,  and  ordered 
all  the  cities  of  the  Netherlands  to  receive  such  garrisons 
as  he  should  direct.^ 

At  the  official  interview  between  Alva  and  Madame  de 
Parma,  at  which  these  powers  were  produced,  the  neces- 
sary preliminary  arrangements  were  made  regarding  the 
Spanish  troops,  which  were  now  to  be  immediately  quar- 
tered in  the  principal  cities.  The  duke,  however,  in- 
formed the  regent  that,  as  these  matters  were  not  within 
her  province,  he  should  take  the  liberty  of  arranging 
them  with  the  authorities,  without  troubling  her  in  the 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  636. 

2  V.  d.  Vynckt,  ii.  53. 

3  Bor,  iv.  182,  183. 


1567]  CIRCULAE  LETTERS  391 

matter,  and  would  inform  her  of  the  result  of  his  mea- 
sures at  their  next  interview,  which  was  to  take  place  on 
the  26th  August.^ 

Circular  letters  signed  by  Philip,  which  Alva  had 
brought  with  him,  were  now  despatched  to  the  different 
municipal  bodies  of  the  country.  In  these  the  cities  were 
severally  commanded  to  accept  the  garrisons,  and  to  pro- 
vide for  the  armies  whose  active  services  the  king  hoped 
would  not  be  required,  but  which  he  had  sent  beforehand 
to  prepare  a  peaceful  entrance  for  himself.  He  enjoined 
the  most  absolute  obedience  to  the  Duke  of  Alva  until 
his  own  arrival,  which  was  to  be  almost  immediate. 
These  letters  were  dated  at  Madrid  on  the  28th  February, 
and  were  now  accompanied  by  a  brief  official  circular, 
signed  by  Margaret  of  Parma,  in  which  she  announced 
the  arrival  of  her  dear  cousin  of  Alva,  and  demanded 
unconditional  submission  to  his  authority .^ 

Having  thus  complied  with  these  demands  of  external 
and  conventional  propriety,  the  indignant  duchess  un- 
bosomed herself,  in  her  private  Italian  letters  to  her 
brother,  of  the  rage  which  had  been  hitherto  partially 
suppressed.  She  reiterated  her  profound  regret  that 
Philip  had  not  yet  accepted  the  resignation  which  she 
had  so  recently  and  so  earnestly  offered.  She  disclaimed 
all  jealousy  of  the  supreme  powers  now  conferred  upon 
Alva,  but  thought  that  his  Majesty  might  have  allowed 
her  to  leave  the  country  before  the  duke  arrived  with  an 
authority  which  was  so  extraordinary,  as  weU  as  so 
humiliating  to  herself.  Her  honor  might  thus  have  been 
saved.  She  was  pained  to  perceive  that  she  was  like  to 
furnish  a  perpetual  example  to  all  others,  who,  consider- 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  632. 

2  Bor,  iv.  183,  184. 


392  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1567 

ing  the  manner  in  which  she  had  been  treated  by  the 
king,  would  henceforth  have  but  little  inducement  to  do 
their  duty.  At  no  time,  on  no  occasion,  could  any  per- 
son ever  render  him  such  services  as  hers  had  been. 
For  nine  years  she  had  enjoyed  not  a  moment  of  repose. 
If  the  king  had  shown  her  but  little  gratitude,  she  was 
consoled  by  tlie  thought  that  she  had  satisfied  her  God, 
herself,  and  the  world.  She  had  compromised  her  health, 
perhaps  her  life,  and  now  that  she  had  pacified  the  coun- 
try, now  that  the  king  was  more  absolute,  more  power- 
ful than  ever  before,  another  was  sent  to  enjoy  the  fruit 
of  her  labors  and  her  sufferings.^ 

The  duchess  made  no  secret  of  her  indignation  at 
being  thus  superseded  and,  as  she  considered  the  mat- 
ter, outraged.  She  openly  avowed  her  displeasure.  She 
was  at  times  almost  beside  herself  with  rage.  There 
was  universal  sympathy  with  her  emotions,  for  all  hated 
the  duke  and  shuddered  at  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards. 
The  day  of  doom  for  all  the  crimes  which  had  ever  been 
committed  in  the  course  of  ages  seemed  now  to  have 
dawned  upon  the  Netherlands.  The  sword  which  had 
so  long  been  hanging  over  them  seemed  now  about  to 
descend.  Throughout  the  provinces  there  was  but  one 
feeling  of  cold  and  hopeless  dismay.  Those  who  still 
saw  a  possibility  of  effecting  their  escape  from  the  fated 
land  swarmed  across  the  frontier.  All  foreign  mer- 
chants deserted  the  great  marts.  The  cities  became  as 
still  as  if  the  plague-banner  had  been  unfurled  on  every 
housetop. 

Meantime  the  captain-general  proceeded  methodically 
with  his  work.  He  distributed  his  troops  through  Brus- 
sels, Ghent,  Antwerp,  and  other  principal  cities.  As  a 
1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  635.     Strada,  i.  298. 


1567]        SECRET  PLANS  OF  THE  GOVEENMENT  393 

measure  of  necessity  and  mark  of  the  last  humiliation, 
he  required  the  municipalities  to  transfer  their  keys  to 
his  keeping.  The  magistrates  of  Ghent  humbly  remon- 
strated against  the  indignity,  and  Egmont  was  impru- 
dent enough  to  make  himseK  the  mouthpiece  of  their 
remonstrance,  which,  it  is  needless  to  add,  was  unsuc- 
cessful.i  Meantime  his  own  day  of  reckoning  had 
arrived. 

As  already  observed,  the  advent  of  Alva  at  the  head 
of  a  foreign  army  was  the  natural  consequence  of  all 
which  had  gone  before.  The  delusion  of  the  royal  visit 
was  still  maintained,  and  the  affectation  of  a  possible 
clemency  still  displayed,  while  the  monarch  sat  quietly 
in  his  cabinet  without  a  remote  intention  of  leaving 
Spain,  and  while  the  messengers  of  his  accumulated  and 
long-concealed  wrath  were  already  descending  upon  their 
prey.  It  was  the  deliberate  intention  of  Philip,  when 
the  duke  was  despatched  to  the  Netherlands,  that  all  the 
leaders  of  the  anti-Inquisition  party  and  all  who  had  at 
any  time  or  in  any  way  implicated  themselves  in  op- 
position to  the  government  or  in  censure  of  its  proceed- 
ings should  be  put  to  death.  It  was  determined  that  the 
provinces  should  be  subjugated  to  the  absolute  domina- 
tion of  the  council  of  Spain,  a  small  body  of  foreigners 
sitting  at  the  other  end  of  Europe,  a  junta  in  which 
Netherlanders  were  to  have  no  voice  and  exercise  no  in- 
fluence. The  despotic  government  of  the  Spanish  and 
Italian  possessions  was  to  be  extended  to  these  Flemish 
territories,  which  were  thus  to  be  converted  into  the 
helpless  dependencies  of  a  foreign  and  an  absolute  croim? 

1  Bor,  iv.  184.     Hoofd,  iv.  150. 

2  "  .  .  .  touchant  I'ordre  qu'il  debvoit  tenir  audiet  pays  .  .  . 
Ton  s'est  peu  appercevoir  que  Vintention  estait  de  mectre  avec  le 


394  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

There  was  to  be  a  reorganization  of  the  Inquisition,  upon 
the  same  footing  claimed  for  it  before  the  outbreak  of 
the  troubles,  together  with  a  reenactment  and  vigorous 
enforcement  of  the  famous  edicts  against  heresy.^ 

Such  was  the  scheme  recommended  by  Granvelle  and 
Spinosa,  and  to  be  executed  by  Alva.-  As  part  and 
parcel  of  this  plan,  it  was  also  arranged  at  secret  meet- 
ings at  the  house  of  Spinosa,  before  the  departure  of 
the  duke,  that  all  the  seigniors  against  whom  the 
Duchess  Margaret  had  made  so  many  complaints,  espe. 
cially  the  Prince  of  Orange,  with  the  Counts  Egmont, 
Horn,  and  Hoogstraaten,  should  be  immediately  arrested 
and  brought  to  chastisement.  The  Marquis  Berghen  and 
the  Baron  Montigny,  being  already  in  Spain,  could  be 
dealt  with  at  pleasure.  It  was  also  decided  that  the 
gentlemen  implicated  in  the  confederacy  or  Compromise 
should  at  once  be  proceeded  against  for  high  treason, 
without  any  regard  to  the  promise  of  pardon  granted  by 
the  duchess. 

The  general  features  of  the  great  project  having  been 
thus  mapped  out,  a  few  indispensable  preliminaries  were 
at  once  executed.  In  order  that  Egmont,  Horn,  and 
other  distinguished  victims  might  not  take  alarm,  and 
thus  escape  the  doom  deliberately  arranged  for  them, 
royal  assurances  were  despatched  to  the  Netherlands, 

temps  I'ordre  de  I'administration  de  justice  et  gouvernement  d  la 
fa^on  d^Espagne,  en  quoy  le  feu  Courtewille  et  moy  avons  toujours 
resists." — Confessions  of  Councilor  Louis  del  Ryo. 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  562. 

2  "  Et  que  mesmement  le  Cardinal  Granvelle  et  President  Viglius, 
M.  de  Berlaymont  et  Noircarmes  auraient  d  sa  MajestS  eonseille 
le  m§me.  Voires  expressement  qu'il  convenoit  une  armee  d'es- 
paignolz  avecq  quelque  chef  pour  maintenir  le  pays  en  I'obeissance 
de  sa  Majesty  et  en  la  religion  Catholique.     Et  que  le  Due  d'Alve 


1567]  VENGEANCE  AND  STEALTH  395 

cheering  their  despondency  and  dispelling  their  doubts. 
With  his  own  hand  Philip  wrote  the  letter,  full  of  affec- 
tion and  confidence,  to  Egmont,  to  which  allusion  has 
already  been  made.  He  wrote  it  after  Alva  had  left 
Madrid  upon  his  mission  of  vengeance.  The  same 
stealthy  measures  were  pursued  with  regard  to  others. 
The  Prince  of  Orange  was  not  capable  of  falling  into  the 
royal  trap,  however  cautiously  baited.  Unfortunately, 
he  could  not  communicate  his  wisdom  to  his  friends. 

It  is  difficult  to  comprehend  so  very  sanguine  a  tem- 
perament as  that  to  which  Egmont  owed  his  destruction. 
It  was  not  the  Prince  of  Orange  alone  who  had  prophe- 
sied his  doom.  Warnings  had  come  to  the  count  from 
every  quarter,  and  they  were  now  frequently  repeated. 
Certainly  he  was  not  without  anxiety,  but  he  had  made 
his  decision,  determined  to  believe  in  the  royal  word, 
and  in  the  royal  gratitude  for  his  services  rendered  not 
only  against  Montmorency  and  De  Thermes,  but  against 
the  heretics  of  Flanders.  He  was,  however,  much 
changed.  He  had  grown  prematurely  old.  At  forty-six 
years  his  hair  was  white,  and  he  never  slept  without  pis- 
tols under  his  pillow. ^  Nevertheless,  he  affected,  and 
sometimes  felt,  a  light-heartedness  which  surprised  all 
around  him.  The  Portuguese  gentleman  Robles,  Sei- 
gneur de  Billy,  who  had  returned  early  in  the  summer 

fut  envoy^  pour  chef  par  conseil  du  Cardinal  Spinosa  et  advis  du 
Cardinal  de  Granvelle,  comme  il  est  assez  apparu  par  plusieurs 
lettres  escriptes  en  ce  temps  1^  k  ses  amys,  et  tout  cecy  est  aussy 
selon  la  commune  opinion.  .  .  .  Sur  le  second  scavoir  les  motifs  et 
raisons  qui  en  ont  estd  pour  persuader  au  Roy  de  I'envoyer,  ne 
puis  dire  aultre  sinon  que  leur  sembloit  selon  que  j'ay  peu  entendre 
que  le  Roy  par  ee  moyen  se  debvroit  faire  aisolut  Boy  et  restablir 
la  religion  Catholique." — Confessions  of  Del  Ryo. 

1  Groen  v.  Prinst.,  Archives,  etc.     Supplement,  35,  36. 


396  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

from  Spain,  whither  he  had  been  sent  upon  a  confiden- 
tial mission  by  Madame  de  Parma,  is  said  to  have  made 
repeated  communications  to  Egmont  as  to  the  dangerous 
position  in  which  he  stood.^  Immediately  after  his  ar- 
rival in  Brussels  he  had  visited  the  count,  then  confined 
to  his  house  by  an  injury  caused  by  the  fall  of  his  horse. 
''  Take  care  to  get  well  very  fast,"  said  De  Billy,  "  for 
there  are  very  bad  stories  told  about  you  in  Spain." 
Egmont  laughed  heartily  at  the  observation,  as  if  nothing 
could  well  be  more  absurd  than  such  a  warning.  His 
friend — for  De  Billy  is  said  to  have  felt  a  real  attachment 
to  the  count— persisted  in  his  prophecies,  telling  him 
that  "birds  in  the  field  sang  much  more  sweetly  than 
those  in  cages,"  and  that  he  would  do  well  to  abandon 
the  country  before  the  arrival  of  Alva.^ 

These  warnings  were  repeated  almost  daily  by  the 
same  gentleman,  and  by  others,  who  were  more  and  more 
astonished  at  Egmont's  infatuation.  Nevertheless,  he 
had  disregarded  their  admonitions,  and  had  gone  forth 
to  meet  the  duke  at  Tirlemont.  Even  then  he  might 
have  seen,  in  the  coldness  of  his  first  reception,  and  in 
the  disrespectful  manner  of  the  Spanish  soldiers,  who 
not  only  did  not  at  first  salute  him,  but  who  murmured 
audibly  that  he  was  a  Lutheran  and  traitor,  that  he  was 
not  so  great  a  favorite  with  the  government  at  Madrid 
as  he  desired  to  be. 

After  the  first  few  moments,  however,  Alva's  manner 
had  changed,  while  Chiapin  Vitelli,  Gabriel  Cerbelloni, 
and  other  principal  officers  received  the  count  with 
great  courtesy,  even  upon  his  first  appearance.  The 
grand  prior,  Fernando  de  Toledo,  natural  son  of  the 
duke,  and  already  a  distinguished  soldier,  seems  to  have 
1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  ^  i^id. 


1567]  EGMONT'S  INFATUATION  397 

felt  a  warm  and  unaffected  friendship  for  Egmont,  whose 
brilliant  exploits  in  the  field  had  excited  his  youthful 
admiration,  and  of  whose  destruction  he  was,  neverthe- 
less, compelled  to  be  the  unwilling  instrument.^  For  a 
few  days,  accordingly,  after  the  arrival  of  the  new  gov- 
ernor-general all  seemed  to  be  going  smoothly.  The 
grand  prior  and  Egmont  became  exceedingly  intimate, 
passing  their  time  together  in  banquets,  masquerades, 
and  play, 2  as  joyously  as  if  the  merry  days  which  had 
succeeded  the  treaty  of  Cateau-Cambresis  were  returned. 
The  duke,  too,  manifested  the  most  friendly  dispositions, 
taking  care  to  send  him  large  presents  of  Spanish  and 
Italian  fruits,  received  frequently  by  the  government 
couriers.^ 

Lapped  in  this  fatal  security,  Egmont  not  only  forgot 
his  fears,  but  unfortunately  succeeded  in  inspiring  Count 
Horn  with  a  portion  of  his  confidence.  That  gentleman 
had  still  remained  in  his  solitary  mansion  at  Weerdt, 
notwithstanding  the  artful  means  which  had  been  used 
to  lure  him  from  that  "  desert."  It  is  singular  that  the 
very  same  person  who,  according  to  a  well-informed 
Catholic  contemporary,  had  been  most  eager  to  warn 
Egmont  of  his  danger  had  also  been  the  foremost  in- 
strument for  effecting  the  capture  of  the  admiral.  The 
Seigneur  de  Billy,  on  the  day  after  his  arrival  from 
Madrid,  had  written  to  Horn,  telling  him  that  the  king 
was  highly  pleased  with  his  services  and  character.  De 
Billy  also  stated  that  he  had  been  commissioned  by 
Philip  to  express  distinctly  the  royal  gratitude  for  the 
count's  conduct,  adding  that  his  Majesty  was  about 
to  visit  the  Netherlands  in  August,  and  would  prob- 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  574. 

2  Pontus  Payen  MS.  *  Ibid. 


398  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

ably   be   preceded    or    accompanied   by   Baron    Mon- 
tigny.^ 

Alva  and  his  son  Don  Fernando  had  soon  afterward 
addressed  letters  from  GerverbiUer  (dated  26th  and  27th 
July)  to  Count  Horn,  filled  with  expressions  of  friend- 
ship and  confidence.2  The  admiral,  who  had  sent  one 
of  his  gentlemen  to  greet  the  duke,  now  responded  from 
Weerdt  that  he  was  very  sensible  of  the  kindness  mani- 
fested toward  him,  but  that,  for  reasons  which  his  sec- 
retary, Alonzo  de  la  Loo,  would  more  fully  communicate, 
he  must  for  the  present  beg  to  be  excused  from  a  per- 
sonal visit  to  Brussels.  The  secretary  was  received  by 
Alva  with  extreme  courtesy.'  The  duke  expressed  infi- 
nite pain  that  the  king  had  not  yet  rewarded  Count 
Horn's  services  according  to  their  merit,  said  that  a  year 
before  he  had  told  his  brother  Montigny  how  very  much 
he  was  the  admiral's  friend,  and  begged  La  Loo  to  tell 
his  master  that  he  should  not  doubt  the  royal  generosity 
and  gratitude.  The  governor  added  that  if  he  could  see 
the  count  in  person  he  could  tell  him  things  which  would 
please  him,  and  which  would  prove  that  he  had  not  been 
forgotten  by  his  friends.  La  Loo  had  afterward  a  long 
conversation  with  the  duke's  secretary,  Albornoz,  who 
assured  him  that  his  master  had  the  greatest  affection 
for  Count  Horn,  and  that,  since  his  affairs  were  so  much 
embarrassed,  he  might  easily  be  provided  with  the  post 
of  governor  at  Milan  or  viceroy  of  Naples,  about  to 
become  vacant.  The  secretary  added  that  the  duke  was 
much  hurt  at  receiving  no  visits  from  many  distinguished 

1  Foppens,  Suppl.  a  Strada,  ii.  553  sqq. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  563,  note. 

3  Letter  of  Alonzo  de  la  Loo  in  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H., 
i.  563,  564. 


1567]  MEASUEES  TO  ENTEAP  HOEN  399 

nobles  whose  faithful  friend  and  servant  he  was,  and 
that  Count  Horn  ought  to  visit  Brussels,  if  not  to  treat 
of  great  affairs,  at  least  to  visit  the  captain-general  as 
a  friend.  "  After  all  this,"  said  honest  Alonzo,  ''  I  am 
going  immediately  to  Weerdt,  to  urge  his  lordship  to 
yield  to  the  duke's  desires."  ^ 

This  scientific  manoeuvering,  joined  to  the  urgent  rep- 
resentations of  Egmont,  at  last  produced  its  effect.  The 
admiral  left  his  retirement  at  Weerdt  to  f aU  into  the  pit 
which  his  enemies  had  been  so  skilfully  preparing  at 
Brussels.  On  the  night  of  the  8th  September,  Egmont 
received  another  most  significative  and  mysterious  warn- 
ing. A  Spaniard,  apparently  an  oificer  of  rank,  came 
secretly  into  his  house,  and  urged  him  solemnly  to  effect 
his  escape  before  the  morrow.  The  countess,  who  related 
the  story  afterward,  always  believed,  without  being  cer- 
tain, that  the  mysterious  visitor  was  Julien  Romero, 
marechal-de-camp.2  Egmont,  however,  continued  as 
blindly  confident  as  before. 

On  the  following  day,  September  9,  the  grand  prior, 
Don  Fernando,  gave  a  magnificent  dinner,  to  which 
Egmont  and  Horn,  together  with  Noircarmes,  the  Vis- 
count of  Ghent,  and  many  other  noblemen,  were  invited. 
The  banquet  was  enlivened  by  the  music  of  Alva's  own 
military  band,  which  the  duke  sent  to  entertain  the 

1  Letter  of  Alonzo  de  la  Loo  in  Correspon dance  de  Philippe  II., 
i.  563,  564.  Compare  La  deduction  de  I'innocence  du  Comte  de 
Homes  (1568),  pp.  33-35. 

2  "Yoireslejou^' precedent,  quelque  Seigneur  du  conseil  I'avoit 
preadverti,  aiant  Madame  sa  femme  souvent  declair6  que  ung  capi- 
taine  Espagnol  qu'on  soub^onnoit  avoir  este  Julian  Eomero,  6tait 
venu  de  nuict  en  son  logis  lui  conseiller  la  retraiete,  mais  la  confi- 
dence de  ses  services,  I'espoir  de  son  innocence  le  fit  desmeurer." 
— Eenom  de  France  MS.,  ii.  c.  i. 


400  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

company.  At  three  o'clock  he  sent  a  message  begging 
the  gentlemen,  after  their  dinner  should  be  concluded,  to 
favor  him  with  their  company  at  his  house  (the  Maison 
de  Jasse),  as  he  wished  to  consult  them  concerning  the 
plan  of  the  citadel  which  he  proposed  erecting  at  Ant- 
werp.i 

At  this  moment  the  grand  prior,  who  was  seated  next 
to  Egmont,  whispered  in  his  ear:  ''Leave  this  place, 
Signor  Count,  instantly;  take  the  fleetest  horse  in  your 
stable  and  make  your  escape  without  a  moment's  delay." 
Egmont,  much  troubled,  and  remembering  the  manifold 
prophecies  and  admonitions  which  he  had  passed  by 
unheeded,  rose  from  the  table  and  went  into  the  next 
room.  He  was  followed  by  Noircarmes  and  two  other 
gentlemen,  who  had  observed  his  agitation  and  were 
curious  as  to  its  cause.  The  count  repeated  to  them  the 
mysterious  words  just  whispered  to  him  by  the  grand 
prior,  adding  that  he  was  determined  to  take  the  advice 
without  a  moment's  delay.  "  Ha !  Count,"  exclaimed 
Noircarmes,  "  do  not  put  lightly  such  implicit  confidence 
in  this  stranger  who  is  counseling  you  to  your  destruc- 
tion. What  will  the  Duke  of  Alva  and  all  the  Spaniards 
say  of  such  a  precipitate  flight  ?  Will  they  not  say  that 
your  Excellency  has  fled  from  the  consciousness  of  guilt  ? 
Will  not  your  escape  be  construed  into  a  confession  of 
high  treason?" 2 

If  these  words  were  really  spoken  by  Noircarmes — and 
that  they  were  so  we  have  the  testimony  of  a  Walloon 
gentleman  in  constant  communication  with  Egmont's 
friends  and  with  the  whole  Catholic  party— they  furnish 
another  proof  of  the  malignant  and  cruel  character  of 
the  man.  The  advice  fixed  forever  the  fate  of  the  vacil- 
1  Pontus  Payen  MS.,  book  iv.  2  ibn. 


1567]  THE   TRAP  SPRUNG  401 

lating  Egraont.  He  had  risen  from  table  determined 
to  take  the  advice  of  a  noble-minded  Spaniard  who  had 
adventured  his  life  to  save  his  friend.  He  now  returned 
in  obedience  to  the  counsel  of  a  fellow-countryman,  a 
Flemish  noble,  to  treat  the  well-meant  warning  with  in- 
difference, and  to  seat  himself  again  at  the  last  banquet 
which  he  was  ever  to  grace  with  his  presence. 

At  four  o'clock,  the  dinner  being  finished,  Horn  and 
Egmont,  accompanied  by  the  other  gentlemen,  proceeded 
to  the  Jasse  house,  then  occupied  by  Alva,  to  take 
part  in  the  deliberations  proposed.^  They  were  received 
by  the  duke  with  great  courtesy.  The  engineer,  Pietro 
Urbino,  soon  appeared,  and  laid  upon  the  table  a  largo 
parchment  containing  the  plan  and  elevation  of  the  cita- 
del to  be  erected  at  Antwerp.^  A  warm  discussion  upon 
the  subject  soon  arose,  Egmont,  Horn,  Noircarmes,  and 
others,  together  with  the  engineers  Urbino  and  Pacheco, 
all  taking  part  in  the  debate.^  After  a  short  time  the 
Duke  of  Alva  left  the  apartment,  on  pretext  of  a  sudden 
indisposition,  leaving  the  company  still  warmly  engaged 
in  their  argument.^  The  council  lasted  till  near  seven 
in  the  evening.  As  it  broke  up,  Don  Sancho  d'Avila, 
captain  of  the  duke's  guard,  requested  Egmont  to  re- 
main for  a  moment  after  the  rest,  as  he  had  a  commu- 
nication to  make  to  him.  After  an  insignificant  remark 
or  two,  the  Spanish  officer,  as  soon  as  the  two  were 
alone,  requested  Egmont  to  surrender  his  sword.  The 
count,  agitated,  and,  notwithstanding  everything  which 
had  gone  before,  still  taken  by  surprise,  scarcely  knew 
what  reply  to  make.^    Don  Sancho  repeated  that  he  had 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS.  ^  Ibid. 

3  Ibid.    Compare  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  573. 
*  Pontus  Payen  MS.      ^  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  573. 
VOL.  II.— 26 


402  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

been  commissioned  to  arrest  him,  and  again  demanded 
his  sword.  At  the  same  moment  the  doors  of  the  ad- 
jacent apartment  were  opened,  and  Egmont  saw  himself 
surrounded  by  a  company  of  Spanish  musketeers  and 
halberdmen.  Finding  himself  thus  entrapped,  he  gave 
up  his  sword,  saying  bitterly,  as  he  did  so,  that  it  had 
at  least  rendered  some  service  to  the  king  in  times 
which  were  past.  He  was  then  conducted  to  a  chamber 
in  the  upper  story  of  the  house,  where  his  temporary 
prison  had  been  arranged.  The  windows  were  barri- 
caded, the  daylight  excluded,  the  whole  apartment  hung 
with  black.  Here  he  remained  fourteen  days  (from  the 
9th  to  23d  September).  During  this  period  he  was 
allowed  no  communication  with  his  friends.  His  room 
was  lighted  day  and  night  with  candles,  and  he  was 
served  in  strict  silence  by  Spanish  attendants,  and 
guarded  by  Spanish  soldiers.  The  captain  of  the  watch 
drew  his  curtain  every  midnight,  and  aroused  him  from 
sleep  that  he  might  be  identified  by  the  relieving  officer.^ 

Count  Horn  was  arrested  upon  the  same  occasion  by 
Captain  Salinas,  as  he  was  proceeding  through  the  court- 
yard of  the  house  after  the  breaking  up  of  the  council. 
He  was  confined  in  another  chamber  of  the  mansion, 
and  met  with  a  precisely  similar  treatment  to  that  ex- 
perienced by  Egmont.  Upon  the  23d  September  both 
were  removed  under  a  strong  guard  to  the  castle  of 
Ghent.2 

On  this  same  day  two  other  important  arrests,  in- 
cluded and  arranged  in  the  same  program,  had  been 
successfully   accomplished.      Bakkerzeel,   private    and 

1  Pontus  Payen  MS. 

2  Ibid.  Compare  Bor,  iv.  184 ;  Hoofd,  iv.  150,  151 ;  Strada,  vi. 
298-300;  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  ubi  sup. 


1567]  TEEACHERY  403 

confidential  secretary  of  Egmont,  and  Antony  van 
Straalen,  the  rich  and  influential  burgomaster  of  Ant- 
werp, were  taken  almost  simultaneously.^  At  the  re- 
quest of  Alva,  the  burgomaster  had  been  invited  by  the 
Duchess  of  Parma  to  repair  on  business  to  Brussels. 
He  seemed  to  have  feared  an  ambuscade,  for,  as  he  got 
into  his  coach  to  set  forth  upon  the  journey,  he  was  so 
muffled  in  a  multiplicity  of  clothing  that  he  was  scarcely 
to  be  recognized.2  He  was  no  sooner,  however,  in  the 
open  country  and  upon  a  spot  remote  from  human  hab- 
itations than  he  was  suddenly  beset  by  a  band  of  forty 
soldiers  under  command  of  Don  Alberic  Lodron  and 
Don  Saneho  de  Lodrono.^  These  officers  had  been 
watching  his  movements  for  many  days.  The  capture 
of  Bakkerzeel  was  accomplished  with  equal  adroitness 
at  about  the  same  hour. 

Alva,  while  he  sat  at  the  council-board  with  Egmont 
and  Horn,  was  secretly  informed  that  those  important 
personages,  Bakkerzeel  and  Straalen,  with  the  private 
secretary  of  the  admiral,  Alonzo  de  la  Loo,  in  addition, 
had  been  thus  successfully  arrested.  He  could  with 
difficulty  conceal  his  satisfaction,  and  left  the  apartment 
immediately  that  the  trap  might  be  sprung  upon  the 
two  principal  victims  of  his  treachery.  He  had  himself 
arranged  aU  the  details  of  these  two  important  arrests, 
while  his  natural  son,  the  Prior  Don  Fernando,  had 
been  compelled  to  superintend  the  proceedings.*  The 
plot  had  been  an  excellent  plot,  and  was  accomplished 
as  successfully  as  it  had  been  sagaciously  conceived. 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  637,  638. 

2  Strada,  i.  299. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  ubi  sup. 

<  Ibid.     Compare  Hoofd,  iv.  151 ;  Strada,  i.  299. 


404  THE   RISE   OF   THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC  [1567 

None  but  Spaniards  had  been  employed  in  any  part  of 
the  affair.^  Officers  of  high  rank  in  his  Majesty's  army 
had  performed  the  part  of  spies  and  policemen  with 
much  adroitness,  nor  was  it  to  be  expected  that  the  duty 
would  seem  a  disgrace,  when  the  Prior  of  the  Knights 
of  St.  John  was  superintendent  of  the  operations, 
when  the  captain-general  of  the  Netherlands  had  ar- 
ranged the  whole  plan,  and  when  all,  from  subaltern  to 
viceroy,  had  received  minute  instructions  as  to  the  con- 
templated treachery  from  the  great  chief  of  the  Spanish 
police,  who  sat  on  the  throne  of  Castile  and  Aragon. 

No  sooner  were  these  gentlemen  in  custody  than  the 
secretary  Albornoz  was  despatched  to  the  house  of 
Count  Horn  and  to  that  of  Bakkerzeel,  where  all  papers 
were  immediately  seized,  inventoried,  and  placed  in  the 
hands  of  the  duke.^  Thus,  if  amid  the  most  secret  com- 
munications of  Egmont  and  Horn  or  their  correspon- 
dents a  single  treasonable  thought  should  be  lurking, 
it  was  to  go  hard  but  it  might  be  twisted  into  a  cord 
strong  enough  to  strangle  them  all. 

The  duke  wrote  a  triumphant  letter  to  his  Majesty 
that  very  night.  He  apologized  that  these  important 
captures  had  been  deferred  so  long,  but  stated  that  he 
had  thought  it  desirable  to  secure  all  these  leading  per- 
sonages at  a  single  stroke.  He  then  narrated  the  mas- 
terly manner  in  which  the  operations  had  been  conducted. 
Certainly,  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  duke  had 
only  reached  Brussels  upon  the  23d  August,  and  that 
the  two  counts  were  securely  lodged  in  prison  on  the 
9th  of  September,  it  seemed  a  superfluous  modesty  upon 
his  part  thus  to  excuse  himself  for  an  apparent  delay. 
At  any  rate,  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  and  of  posterity 
^  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  638.  ^  ibid. 


1567]  CONSTEENATION  AND  WEATH  405 

his  zeal  to  cany  out  the  bloody  commands  of  his  master 
was  sufficiently  swift. 

The  consternation  was  universal  throughout  the  prov- 
inces when  the  arrests  became  known.  Egmont's  great 
popularity  and  distinguished  services  placed  him  so  high 
above  the  mass  of  citizens,  and  his  attachment  to  the 
Catholic  religion  was,  moreover,  so  well  known,  as  to 
make  it  obvious  that  no  man  could  now  be  safe  when 
men  like  him  were  in  the  power  of  Alva  and  his  mjT- 
midons.  The  animosity  to  the  Spaniards  increased 
hourly. 1  The  duchess  affected  indignation''^  at  the  arrest 
of  the  two  nobles,  although  it  nowhere  appears  that  she 
attempted  a  word  in  their  defense,  or  lifted,  at  any  sub- 
sequent moment,  a  finger  to  save  them.  She  was  not 
anxious  to  wash  her  hands  of  the  blood  of  two  innocent 
men ;  she  was  only  offended  that  they  had  been  arrested 
without  her  permission.  The  duke  had,  it  is  true,  sent 
Berlaymont  and  Mansfeld  to  give  her  information  of  the 
fact  as  soon  as  the  capture  had  been  made,  with  the 
plausible  excuse  that  he  preferred  to  save  her  from  all 
the  responsibility  and  all  the  unpopularity  of  the  mea- 
sure.^ Nothing,  however,  could  appease  her  wrath  at 
this  and  every  other  indication  of  the  contempt  in  which 
he  appeared  to  hold  the  sister  of  his  sovereign.  She 
complained  of  his  conduct  daily  to  every  one  who  was 
admitted  to  her  presence.  Herself  oppressed  by  a  sense 
of  personal  indignity,  she  seemed  for  a  moment  to  iden- 
tify herself  with  the  cause  of  the  oppressed  provinces. 
She  seemed  to  imagine  herself  the  champion  of  their 
liberties,  and  the  Netherlanders,  for  a  moment,  seemed 
to  participate  in  the  delusion.     Because  she  was  indig- 

1  Bor,  iv.  185.  2  gtrada,  i.  301. 

3  Bor,  iv.  185.     Strada,  i.  300,  301. 


406  THE   RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1567 

nant  at  the  insolence  of  the  Duke  of  Alva  to  herself,  the 
honest  citizens  began  to  give  her  credit  for  a  sympathy 
with  their  own  wrongs.  She  expressed  herself  deter- 
mined to  move  about  from  one  city  to  another  until  the 
answer  to  her  demand  for  dismissal  should  arrive.^  She 
allowed  her  immediate  attendants  to  abuse  the  Spaniards 
in  good  set  terms  upon  every  occasion.  Even  her  pri- 
vate chaplain  permitted  himself,  in  preaching  before  her 
in  the  palace  chapel,  to  denounce  the  whole  nation  as  a 
race  of  traitors  and  ravishers,  and  for  this  offense  was 
only  reprimanded,  much  against  her  will,  by  the  duch- 
ess, and  ordered  to  retire  for  a  season  to  his  convent. 
She  did  not  attempt  to  disguise  her  dissatisfaction  at 
every  step  which  had  been  taken  by  the  duke.  In  all 
this  there  was  much  petulance,  but  very  little  dignity, 
while  there  was  neither  a  spark  of  real  sympathy  for 
the  oppressed  millions,  nor  a  throb  of  genuine  womanly 
emotion  for  the  impending  fate  of  the  two  nobles.  Her 
principal  grief  was  that  she  had  pacified  the  provinces, 
and  that  another  .had  now  arrived  to  reap  the  glory ; 
but  it  was  difficult,  while  the  unburied  bones  of  many 
heretics  were  still  hanging,  by  her  decree,  on  the  rafters 
of  their  own  dismantled  churches,  for  her  successfully 
to  enact  the  part  of  a  benignant  and  merciful  regent. 
But  it  is  very  true  that  the  horrors  of  the  duke's  admin- 
istration have  been  propitious  to  the  fame  of  Margaret, 
and  perhaps  more  so  to  that  of  Cardinal  Granvelle, 
The  faint  and  struggling  rays  of  humanitj'  which  occa- 
sionally illumined  the  course  of  their  government  were 
destined  to  be  extinguished  in  a  chaos  so  profound  and 
dark  that  these  last  beams  of  light  seemed  clearer  and 
more  bountiful  by  the  contrast. 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  631.  2  ibid. 


1567]  ROYAL  SATISFACTION  407 

The  Count  of  Hoogstraaten,  who  was  on  nis  way  to 
Brussels,  had,  by  good  fortune,  injured  his  hand  through 
the  accidental  discharge  of  a  pistol.  Detained  by  this 
casualty  at  Cologne,  he  was  informed,  before  his  arrival 
at  the  capital,  of  the  arrest  of  his  two  distinguished 
friends,  and  accepted  the  hint  to  betake  himself  at  once 
to  a  place  of  safety.^ 

The  loyalty  of  the  elder  Mansf  eld  was  beyond  dispute 
even  by  Alva.  His  son  Charles  had,  however,  been  im- 
prudent, and,  as  we  have  seen,  had  even  affixed  his 
name  to  the  earliest  copies  of  the  Compromise.  He  had 
retired,  it  is  true,  from  all  connection  with  the  confeder- 
ates, but  his  father  knew  well  that  the  young  count's 
signature  upon  that  famous  document  would  prove  his 
death-warrant,  were  he  found  in  the  country.  He  there- 
fore had  sent  him  into  Germany  before  the  arrival  of 
the  duke.2 

The  king's  satisfaction  was  unbounded  when  he 
learned  this  important  achievement  of  Alva,  and  he 
wrote  immediately  to  express  his  approbation  in  the  most 
extravagant  terms.^  Cardinal  Granvelle,  on  the  con- 
trary, affected  astonishment  at  a  course  which  he  had 
secretly  counseled.  He  assured  his  Majesty  that  he 
had  never  believed  Egmont  to  entertain  sentiments  op- 
posed to  the  Catholic  religion,  nor  to  the  interests  of 
the  crown,  up  to  the  period  of  his  own  departure  from 
the  Netherlands.  He  was  persuaded,  he  said,  that  the 
count  had  been  abused  by  others,  aWiough,  to  he  sure,  the 
cardinal  had  learned  with  regret  what  Egmont  had  written 
on  the  occasion  of  the  baptism  of  Count  Hoogstraaten's 

1  Bor,  iv.  185. 

2  Ibid.     Correspondance  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  647. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  666. 


408  THE  EISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

child.  As  to  the  other  persons  arrested,  he  said  that  no 
one  regretted  their  fate.  The  cardinal  added  that  he 
was  supposed  to  he  himself  the  instigator  of  these  captures, 
but  that  he  was  not  disturbed  by  that,  or  by  other  im- 
putations of  a  similar  nature.^ 

In  conversation  with  those  about  him  he  frequently 
expressed  regret  that  the  Prince  of  Orange  had  been 
too  crafty  to  be  caught  in  the  same  net  in  which  his 
more  simple  companions  were  so  inextricably  entangled. 
Indeed,  on  the  first  arrival  of  the  news  that  men  of 
high  rank  had  been  arrested  in  Brussels,  the  cardinal 
eagerly  inquired  if  the  Taciturn  had  been  taken,  for  by 
that  term  he  always  characterized  the  prince.  Receiv- 
ing a  negative  reply,  he  expressed  extreme  disappoint- 
ment, adding  that  if  Orange  had  escaped  they  had 
taken  nobody,  and  that  his  capture  would  have  been 
more  valuable  than  that  of  every  man  in  the  Nether- 
lands.2 

Peter  Titelmann,  too,  the  famous  inquisitor,  who,  re- 
tired from  active  life,  was  then  living  upon  Philip's 
bounty  and  encouraged  by  friendly  letters  from  that 
monarch,^  expressed  the  same  opinion.  Having  been 
informed  that  Egmont  and  Horn  had  been  captured,  he 
eagerly  inquired  if  "  wise  William  "  had  also  been  taken. 
He  was,  of  course,  answered  in  the  negative.  ''Then 
will  our  joy  be  but  brief,"  he  observed.  ''  Woe  unto  us 
for  the  wrath  to  come  from  Germany."  * 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  674. 

2  Hoofd,  iv.  151.     Strada,  i.  300.     Meteren,  50. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  523. 

*  "...  si  (inquit)  astutus  Gulielmus  (Aurantius)  evasit  non 
erunt  solida  gaudia  nostra,  vaB  nobis  a  bello  Germanico."— Pan- 
dorse  sive  venise  Hispanicas  editse  Anatomia.  Prometheo  auctore, 
1574. 


1567]  PEIESTLY  INSINUATION  409 

On  the  12th  of  July  of  this  year  Philip  wrote  to 
Granvelle  to  inquire  the  particulars  of  a  letter  which 
the  Prince  of  Orange,  according  to  a  previous  communica- 
tion of  the  cardinal,  had  written  to  Egmont  on  the  occa- 
sion of  the  baptism  of  Count  Hoogstraaten's  child.^  On 
the  17th  of  August  the  cardinal  replied  by  setting  the 
king  right  as  to  the  error  which  he  had  committed. 
The  letter,  as  he  had  already  stated,  was  not  written  by 
Orange,  hut  hy  Egmont,  and  he  expressed  his  astonish- 
ment that  Madame  de  Parma  had  not  yet  sent  it  to  his 
Majesty.  The  duchess  must  have  seen  it,  because  her 
confessor  had  shown  it  to  the  person  who  was  Gran- 
velle's  informant.  In  this  letter,  the  cardinal  continued, 
the  statement  had  been  made  by  Egmont  to  the  Prince 
of  Orange  that  their  plots  were  discovered,  that  the  king 
was  making  armaments,  that  they  were  unable  to  resist 
him,  and  that  therefore  it  had  become  necessary  to  dis- 
semble and  to  accommodate  themselves  as  well  as  pos- 
sible to  the  present  situation,  while  waiting  for  other 
circumstances  under  which  to  accomplish  their  designs. 
Granvelle  advised,  moreover,  that  Straalen,  who  had 
been  privy  to  the  letter,  and  perhaps  the  amanuensis, 
should  be  forthwith  arrested.^ 

The  cardinal  was  determined  not  to  let  the  matter 
sleep,  notwithstanding  his  protestation  of  a  kindly  feel- 
ing toward  the  imprisoned  count.  Against  the  state- 
ment that  he  knew  of  a  letter  which  amounted  to  a  full 
confession  of  treason  out  of  Egmont's  own  mouth, — a 
fact  which,  if  proved,  and  perhaps  if  even  insinuated, 
would  be  sufficient  with  Philip  to  deprive  Egmont  of 
twenty  thousand  lives,— against  these  constant  recom- 

^  Correspondance  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  564-610. 
2  Ibid.,  i.  624. 


410  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

mendations  to  his  suspicious  and  sanguinary  master  to 
ferret  out  this  document,  if  it  were  possible,  it  must  be 
confessed  that  the  churchman's  vague  and  hypocritical 
expressions  on  the  side  of  mercy  were  very  little  worth. 
Certainly  these  seeds  of  suspicion  did  not  fall  upon  a 
baiTcn  soil.  Philip  immediately  communicated  the  in- 
formation thus  received  to  the  Duke  of  Alva,  charging 
him  on  repeated  occasions  to  find  out  what  was  written, 
either  by  Egmont,  or  by  Straalen  at  Egmont's  instiga- 
tion, stating  that  such  a  letter  was  written  at  the  time 
of  the  Hoogstraaten  baptism,  that  it  would  probably 
illustrate  the  opinions  of  Egmont  at  that  period,  and 
that  the  letter  itself,  which  the  confessor  of  Madame  de 
Parma  had  once  had  in  his  hands,  ought,  if  possible,  to 
be  procured.^  Thus  the  very  language  used  by  Gran- 
velle  to  Philip  was  immediately  repeated  by  the  monarch 
to  his  representative  in  the  Netherlands,  at  the  moment 
when  all  Egmont's  papers  were  in  his  possession,  and 
when  Egmont's  private  secretary  was  undergoing  the 
torture,^  in  order  that  secrets  might  be  wrenched  from 
him  which  had  never  entered  his  brain.  The  fact  that 
no  such  letter  was  found,  that  the  duchess  had  never 
alluded  to  any  such  document,  and  that  neither  a  careful 
scrutiny  of  papers  nor  the  application  of  the  rack  ^ 
could  elicit  any  satisfactory  information  on  the  subject, 
leads  to  the  conclusion  that  no  such  treasonable  paper 
had  ever  existed,  save  in  the  imagination  of  the  cardinal. 
At  any  rate,  it  is  no  more  than  just  to  hesitate  before 
affixing  a  damning  character  to  a  document,  in  the  ab- 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  666-702. 

2  Vigl.  Epist.  ad  Hopp.,  xxvi.  406.     V.  d.  Vynckt,  ii.  82.     Cor- 
respondance de  Philippe  II.,  i.  671. 

'  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  671. 


1567]  FATE  OF  BERGHEN  ANB  MONTIGNY  411 

sence  of  any  direct  proof  that  there  ever  was  such  a 
document  at  all.  The  confessor  of  Madame  de  Parma 
told  another  person,  who  told  the  cardinal,  that  either 
Count  Egmont,  or  Burgomaster  Straalen  by  command 
of  Count  Egmont,  wrote  to  the  Prince  of  Orange  thus 
and  so.  What  evidence  was  this  upon  which  to  found 
a  charge  of  high  treason  against  a  man  whom  Granvelle 
affected  to  characterize  as  otherwise  neither  opposed  to 
the  Catholic  religion  nor  to  the  true  service  of  the  king  1 
What  vulpine  kind  of  mercy  was  it  on  the  part  of  the 
cardinal,  while  making  such  deadly  insinuations,  to 
recommend  the  imprisoned  victim  to  clemency  ? 

The  unfortunate  envoys.  Marquis  Berghen  and  Baron 
Montigny,  had  remained  in  Spain  under  close  observa- 
tion. Of  those  doomed  victims  who,  in  spite  of  friendly 
remonstrances  and  of  ominous  warnings,  had  thus  ven- 
tured into  the  lion's  den,  no  retreating  footmarks  were 
ever  to  be  seen.  Their  fate,  now  that  Alva  had  at  last 
been  despatched  to  the  Netherlands,  seemed  to  be  sealed, 
and  the  Marquis  Berghen,  accepting  the  augury  in  its 
most  evil  sense,  immediately  afterward  had  sickened 
unto  death.  Whether  it  were  the  sickness  of  hope  de- 
ferred suddenly  changing  to  despair,  or  whether  it  were 
a  still  more  potent  and  unequivocal  poison  which  came 
to  the  relief  of  the  unfortunate  nobleman,  will  perhaps 
never  be  ascertained  with  certainty.^  The  secrets  of 
those  terrible  prison-houses  of  Spain,  where  even  the 
eldest  begotten  son  and  the  wedded  wife  of  the  mon- 
arch were  soon  afterward  believed  to  have  been  the 
victims  of  his  dark  revenge,  can  never  perhaps  be  ac- 
curately known  until  the  grave  gives  up  its  dead  and 
the  buried  crimes  of  centuries  are  revealed. 

1  Strada,  i.  290.    Hoofd,  iv.  146. 


412  THE  EISE  OF  THE  BUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

It  was  very  soon  after  the  departure  of  Alva's  fleet 
from  Cartagena  that  the  Marquis  Berghen  felt  his  end 
approaching.  He  sent  for  the  Prince  of  Eboli,  with 
whom  he  had  always  maintained  intimate  relations,  and 
whom  he  believed  to  be  his  disinterested  friend.  Rely- 
ing upon  his  faithful  breast,  and  trusting  to  receive 
from  his  eyes  alone  the  pious  drops  of  sympathy  which 
he  required,  the  dying  noble  poured  out  his  long  and 
last  complaint.  He  charged  him  to  tell  the  man  whom 
he  would  no  longer  call  his  king  that  he  had  ever  been 
true  and  loyal,  that  the  bitterness  of  having  been  con- 
stantly suspected,  when  he  was  conscious  of  entire 
fidelity,  was  a  sharper  sorrow  than  could  be  lightly 
believed,  and  that  he  hoped  the  time  would  come  when 
his  own  truth  and  the  artifices  of  his  enemies  would  be 
brought  to  light.  He  closed  his  parting  message  by 
predicting  that  after  he  had  been  long  laid  in  the  grave 
the  impeachments  against  his  character  would  be  at  last, 
although  too  late,  retracted.^ 

So  spake  the  unhappy  envoy,  and  his  friend  replied 
with  words  of  consolation.  It  is  probable  that  he  even 
ventured,  in  the  king's  name,  to  grant  him  the  liberty 
of  returning  to  his  home— the  only  remedy,  as  his  phy- 
sicians had  repeatedly  stated,  which  could  possibly  be 
applied  to  his  disease.  But  the  devilish  hypocrisy  of 
Philip  and  the  abject  perfidy  of  Eboli,  at  this  juncture, 
almost  surpass  belief.  The  prince  came  to  press  the 
hand  and  to  close  the  eyes  of  the  dying  man  whom  he 
called  his  friend,  having  first  carefully  studied  a  billet 
of  most  minute  and  secret  instructions  from  his  master 
as  to  the  deportment  he  was  to  observe  upon  this  solemn 
occasion  and  afterward.     This  paper,  written  in  Philip's 

1  Strada,  i.  290. 


1567]  TRAGI-COMEDY  413 

own  hand,  had  been  delivered  to  Eboli  on  the  very  day 
of  his  visit  to  Berghen,  and  bore  the  superscription  that 
it  was  not  to  be  read  nor  opened  till  the  messenger  who 
brought  it  had  left  his  presence.  It  directed  the  prince, 
if  it  should  be  evident  that  the  marquis  was  past  re- 
covery, to  promise  him,  in  the  king's  name,  the  permis- 
sion of  returning  to  the  Netherlands.  Should,  however, 
a  possibility  of  his  surviving  appear,  Eboli  was  only  to 
hold  out  a  hope  that  such  permission  might  eventually 
be  obtained.  In  case  of  the  death  of  Berghen,  the  prince 
was  immediately  to  confer  with  the  grand  inquisitor 
and  with  the  Count  of  Feria  upon  the  measures  to  be 
taken  for  his  obsequies.  It  might  seem  advisable,  in 
that  event,  to  exhibit  the  regret  which  the  king  and  his 
ministers  felt  for  his  death,  and  the  great  esteem  in 
which  they  held  the  nobles  of  the  Netherlands.  At  the 
same  time,  Eboli  was  further  instructed  to  confer  with 
the  same  personages  as  to  the  most  efficient  means  for 
preventing  the  escape  of  Baron  Montigny;  to  keep  a 
vigilant  eye  upon  his  movements,  and  to  give  general 
directions  to  governors  and  to  postmasters  to  intercept 
his  flight,  should  it  be  attempted.  Finally,  in  case  of 
Berghen's  death,  the  prince  was  directed  to  despatch  a 
special  messenger,  apparently  on  his  own  responsibility, 
and  as  if  in  the  absence  and  without  the  knowledge  of 
the  king,  to  inform  the  Duchess  of  Parma  of  the  event, 
and  to  urge  her  immediately  to  take  possession  of  the 
city  of  Bergen-op-Zoom  and  of  all  other  property  be- 
longing to  the  marquis,  until  it  should  be  ascertained 
whether  it  were  not  possible  to  convict  him,  after  death, 
of  treason,  and  to  confiscate  his  estates  accordingly.^ 
Such  were  the  instructions  of  Philip  to  Eboli,  and  pre- 

1  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  572. 


414  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

cisely  in  accordance  with  the  program  was  the  horrible 
comedy  enacted  at  the  death-bed  of  the  envoy.  Three 
days  after  his  parting  interview  with  his  disinterested 
friend  the  marquis  was  a  corpse.^  Before  his  limbs 
were  cold,  a  messenger  was  on  his  way  to  Brussels,  in- 
structing the  regent  to  sequestrate  Ms  property,  and  to 
arrest,  upon  suspicion  of  heresy,  the  youthful  Jcinsman  and 
niece,  who,  hy  the  will  of  the  marquis,  were  to  be  united 
in  marriage  and  to  share  his  estate.^  The  whole  drama, 
beginning  with  the  death-scene,  was  enacted  according 
to  order.  Before  the  arrival  of  Alva  in  the  Netherlands 
the  property  of  the  marquis  was  in  the  hands  of  the 
government,  awaiting  the  confiscation^  which  was  but 
for  a  brief  season  delayed,  while,  on  the  other  hand. 
Baron  Montigny,  Berghen's  companion  in  doom,  who 
was  not,  however,  so  easily  to  be  carried  off  by  home- 
sickness, was  closely  confined  in  the  alcazar  of  Segovia, 
never  to  leave  a  Spanish  prison  alive.^  There  is  some- 
thing pathetic  in  the  delusion  in  which  Montigny  and 
his  brother,  the  Count  Horn,  both  indulged,  each  believ- 
ing that  the  other  was  out  of  harm's  way,  the  one  by  his 
absence  from  the  Netherlands,  the  other  by  his  absence 
from  Spain,  while  both,  involved  in  the  same  meshes, 
were  rapidly  and  surely  approaching  their  fate.^ 

In  the  same  despatch  of  the  9th  September  in  which 
the  duke  communicated  to  Philip  the  capture  of  Egmont 

1  Strada,  i.  290. 

2  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  547-590.  Strada,  i.  291,  and 
note  of  M.  Gachard. 

3  V.  d.  Vynckt,  ii.  77. 

*  Hoofd,  iv.  172,  173.  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  648, 
654,  666. 

5  Vide  Deduction  de  I'innocence  du  Comte  de  Homes,  pp.  203, 
204. 


1567]  THE  BLOOD-COUNCIL  415 

and  Horn,  he  announced  to  him  his  determination  to 
establish  a  new  court  for  the  trial  of  crimes  committed 
during  the  recent  period  of  troubles.^  This  wonderful 
tribunal  was  accordingly  created  with  the  least  possible 
delay.  It  was  called  the  Council  of  Troubles,  but  it 
soon  acquired  the  terrible  name,  by  which  it  will  be  for- 
ever known  in  history,  of  the  Blood-Council.^  It  super- 
seded all  other  institutions.  Every  court,  from  those  of 
the  municipal  magistracies  up  to  the  supreme  councils 
of  the  provinces,  was  forbidden  to  take  cognizance  in 
future  of  any  cause  growing  out  of  the  late  troubles.' 
The  council  of  state,  although  it  was  not  formally  dis- 
banded, fell  into  complete  desuetude,  its  members  being 
occasionally  summoned  into  Alva's  private  chambers  in 
an  irregular  manner,  while  its  principal  functions  were 
usurped  by  the  Blood-Council.  Not  only  citizens  of 
every  province,  but  the  municipal  bodies  and  even  the 
sovereign  provincial  estates  themselves,  were  compelled 
to  plead,  like  humble  individuals,  before  this  new  and 
extraordinary  tribunal.*  It  is  unnecessary  to  allude  to 
the  absolute  violation  which  was  thus  committed  of  all 
charters,  laws,  and  privileges,  because  the  very  creation 
of  the  council  was  a  bold  and  brutal  proclamation  that 
those  laws  and  privileges  were  at  an  end.  The  consti- 
tution or  maternal  principle  of  this  suddenly  erected 
court  was  of  a  twofold  nature.  It  defined  and  it  punished 
the  crime  of  treason.  The  definitions,  couched  in  eigh- 
teen articles,  declared  it  to  be  treason  to  have  delivered 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  11.,  i.  637. 

2  Hoofd,  iv.  153.     Bor,  iv.  185,  186.     Meteren,  f.  49.     Reidani, 
Ann.  Belg.,  p.  5. 

3  Bor,  iv.  185,  186. 

*  ILid.     Hoofd,  Meteren,  ubi  sup. 


416  THE  RISE   OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

or  signed  any  petition  against  the  new  bishops,  the  In- 
quisition, or  the  edicts ;  to  have  tolerated  public  preach- 
ing under  any  circumstances ;  to  have  omitted  resistance 
to  the  image-breaking,  to  the  field-preaching,  or  to  the 
presentation  of  the  Request  by  the  nobles ;  and,  ''  either 
through  sympathy  or  surprise,"  to  have  asserted  that 
the  king  did  not  possess  the  right  to  deprive  all  the 
provinces  of  their  liberties,  or  to  have  maintained  that 
this  present  tribunal  was  bound  to  respect  in  any  man- 
ner any  laws  or  any  charters.^  In  these  brief  and 
simple  but  comprehensive  terms  was  the  crime  of  high 
treason  defined.  The  punishment  was  still  more  briefly, 
simply,  and  comprehensively  stated,  for  it  was  instant 
death  in  all  cases.^  So  well,  too,  did  this  new  and  ter- 
rible engine  perform  its  work  that  in  less  than  three 
months  from  the  time  of  its  erection  eighteen  hundred 
human  beings  had  suffered  death  ^  by  its  summary  pro- 
ceedings, some  of  the  highest,  the  noblest,  and  the  most 
virtuous  in  the  land  among  the  number;  nor  had  it 
then  manifested  the  slightest  indication  of  faltering  in 
its  dread  career. 

Yet,  strange  to  say,  this  tremendous  court,  thus  estab- 
lished upon  the  ruins  of  all  the  ancient  institutions  of 
the  country,  had  not  been  provided  with  even  a  nominal 
authority  from  any  source  whatever.  The  king  had 
granted  it  no  letters  patent  or  charter,  nor  had  even  the 
Duke  of  Alva  thought  it  worth  while  to  grant  any  com- 
missions, either  in  his  own  name  or  as  captain-general, 
to  any  of  the  members  composing  the  board.*    The 

1  Meteren,  49.  2  Hoofd,  Bor,  ubi  supra.     Meteren. 

■      3  Brandt,  Hist,  der  Ref.,  i.  468.   Bor,  iv.  116. 

*  V.  Notice  sur  le  Cons,  des  Troubles,  par  M.  Gachard,  p.  7. 
MS.  Letters  of  Requesens,  30tli  December,  1573,  and  of  Geron.  de 
Roda,  18th  May,  1576. 


1567]  CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  BOAED  417 

Blood-Council  was  merely  an  informal  club,  of  which 
the  duke  was  perpetual  president,  while  the  other  mem- 
bers were  all  appointed  by  himself. 

Of  these  subordinate  councilors,  two  had  the  right 
of  voting,  subject,  however,  in  all  cases  to  his  final  de- 
cision, while  the  rest  of  the  number  did  not  vote  at  all.^ 
It  had  not,  therefore,  in  any  sense,  the  character  of  a 
judicial,  legislative,  or  executive  tribunal,  but  was  purely 
a  board  of  advice  by  which  the  bloody  labors  of  the 
duke  were  occasionally  lightened  as  to  detail,  while  not 
a  feather's  weight  of  power  or  of  responsibility  was 
removed  from  his  shoulders.  He  reserved  for  himself 
the  final  decision  upon  all  causes  which  should  come 
before  the  council,  and  stated  his  motives  for  so  doing 
with  grim  simplicity.  "  Two  reasons,"  he  wrote  to  the 
king,  "  have  determined  me  thus  to  limit  the  power  of 
the  tribunal :  the  first  that,  not  knowing  its  members,  I 
might  be  easily  deceived  by  them ;  the  second,  that  the 
men  of  law  only  condemn  for  crimes  which  are  proved, 
whereas  your  Majesty  knows  that  affairs  of  state  are 
governed  by  very  different  rules  from  the  Jaws  which 
they  have  here."^ 

It  being,  therefore,  the  object  of  the  duke  to  compose 
a  body  of  men  who  would  be  of  assistance  to  him  in 
condemning  for  crimes  which  could  not  be  proved  and 
in  slipping  over  statutes  which  were  not  to  be  recognized, 
it  must  be  confessed  that  he  was  not  unfortunate  in  the 

1  Gachard,  Notice,  etc.,  8  and  9,  with  the  letters  cited  from 
Alva,  14th  September,  1567,  and  from  Eequesens,  30th  December, 
1573. 

2  Ibid.,  p.  5.  "La  otra  es  que  letrados  no  senteneian  sine  en 
casos  probados ;  y  como  V.  M.  sabe,  los  negocios  de  Estado  son 
muy  differentes  de  las  leyes  que  ellos  tienen."— Letter  of  9th  Sep- 
tember, 1567. 

VOL.  11.— 27 


418  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

appointments  which  he  made  to  the  office  of  councilors. 
In  this  task  of  appointment  he  had  the  assistance  of  the 
experienced  Viglius.^  That  learned  jurisconsult,  with 
characteristic  lubricity,  had  evaded  the  dangerous  honor 
for  himself,  but  he  nominated  a  number  of  persons  from 
whom  the  duke  selected  his  list.  The  sacerdotal  robes 
which  he  had  so  recently  and  so  "craftily"  assumed 
furnished  his  own  excuse,  and  in  his  letters  to  his  faith- 
ful Hopper  he  repeatedly  congratulated  himseK  upon 
his  success  in  keeping  himself  at  a  distance  from  so 
bloody  and  perilous  a  post.^ 

It  is  impossible  to  look  at  the  conduct  of  the  distin- 
guished Frisian  at  this  important  juncture  without  con- 
tempt. Bent  only  upon  saving  himself,  his  property, 
and  his  reputation,  he  did  not  hesitate  to  bend  before 
the  "  most  illustrious  duke,"  as  he  always  denominated 
him,  with  fulsome  and  fawning  homage.^  While  he 
declined  to  dip  his  own  fingers  in  the  innocent  blood 
which  was  about  to  flow  in  torrents,  he  did  not  object 
to  officiate  at  the  initiatory  preliminaries  of  the  great 
Netherland  holocaust.  His  decent  and  dainty  demeanor 
seems  even  more  offensive  than  the  jocularity  of  the 
real  murderers.  Conscious  that  no  man  knew  the  laws 
and  customs  of  the  Netherlands  better  than  himself,  he 
had  the  humble  effrontery  to  observe  that  it  was  neces- 
sary for  him  at  that  moment  silently  to  submit  his  own 
unskilfulness  to  the  superior  judgment  and  knowledge 
of  others.*  Having  at  last  been  relieved  from  the  stone 
of  Sisyphus,  which,  as  he  plaintively  expressed  himself, 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  637.  Vigl.  Epist.  ad  Hopp., 
xli.  441,  442 ;  xxvii.  410. 

2  Vigl.  ad  Hopp.,  Epist.  27  et  41. 

3  Ibid.,  26,  etc.  *  Ibid.,  26. 


1567]  OBSEQUIOUS  VIGLIUS  419 

he  had  been  rolling  for  twenty  years  ;^  having,  by  the 
arrival  of  Tisnacq,  obtained  his  discharge  as  president 
of  the  state  council,  he  was  yet  not  unwilling  to  retain 
the  emoluments  and  the  rank  of  president  of  the  privy 
council,  although  both  offices  had  become  sinecures 
since  the  erection  of  the  Council  of  Blood.  Although 
his  life  had  been  spent  in  administrative  and  judicial 
employments,  he  did  not  blush  upon  a  matter  of 
constitutional  law  to  defer  to  the  authority  of  such 
jurisconsults  as  the  Duke  of  Alva  and  his  two  Spanish 
bloodhounds,  Vargas  and  Del  Ryo.  He  did  not  like,  he 
observed  in  his  confidential  correspondence,  to  gainsay 
the  duke  when  maintaining  that  in  cases  of  treason 
the  privileges  of  Brabant  were  powerless,  although  he 
mildly  doubted  whether  the  Brabantines  would  agree 
with  the  doctrine.2  He  often  thought,  he  said,  of  rem- 
edies for  restoring  the  prosperity  of  the  provinces,  but 
in  action  he  only  assisted  the  duke,  to  the  best  of  his 
abilities,  in  arranging  the  Blood-Council.  He  wished 
well  to  his  country,  but  he  was  more  anxious  for  the 
favor  of  Alva.  ''  I  rejoice,"  said  he,  in  one  of  his  letters, 
"  that  the  most  illustrious  duke  has  written  to  the  king 
in  praise  of  my  obsequiousness ;  when  I  am  censured 
here  for  so  reverently  cherishing  him,  it  is  a  consolation 
that  my  services  to  the  king  and  to  the  governor  are  not 
unappreciated  there."  ^  Indeed,  the  Duke  of  Alva,  who 
had  originally  suspected  the  president's  character, 
seemed  at  last  overcome  by  his  indefatigable  and- 
cringing  homage.  He  wrote  to  the  king,  in  whose 
good  graces  the  learned  doctor  was  most  anxious  at 
that  portentous  period  to  maintain  himself,  that  the 

1  Vita  Viglii,  cxi. 

2  Vigl.  ad  Hopp.,  Epist.  24.  »  Ibid.,  26. 


420  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC  [1567 

president  was  very  serviceable  and  diligent,  and  that 
he  deserved  to  receive  a  crumb  of  comfort  from  the 
royal  hand.^  Philip,  in  consequence,  wrote  in  one  of 
his  letters  a  few  lines  of  vague  compliment,  which  could 
be  shown  to  Viglius,  according  to  Alva's  suggestion.  It 
is,  however,  not  a  little  characteristic  of  the  Spanish 
court  and  of  the  Spanish  monarch  that,  on  the  very  day 
before,  he  had  sent  to  the  captain-general  a  few  docu- 
ments of  very  different  import.  In  order,  as  he  said, 
that  the  duke  might  be  ignorant  of  nothing  which 
related  to  the  Netherlands,  he  forwarded  to  him  copies 
of  the  letters  written  by  Margaret  of  Parma  from 
Brussels  three  years  before.  These  letters,  as  it  wiU  be 
recollected,  contained  an  account  of  the  secret  investiga- 
tions which  the  duchess  had  made  as  to  the  private  char- 
acter and  opinions  of  Viglius,— at  the  very  moment 
when  he  apparently  stood  highest  in  her  confidence,— 
and  charged  him  with  heresy,  swindling,  and  theft. 
Thus  the  painstaking  and  time-serving  president,  with 
all  his  learning  and  experience,  was  successively  the 
dupe  of  Margaret  and  of  Alva,  whom  he  so  obsequiously 
courted,  and  always  of  Philip,  whom  he  so  feared  and 
worshiped. 2 

With  his  assistance  the  list  of  blood-councilors  was 
quickly  completed.  No  one  who  was  offered  the  ofiice 
refused  it.  Noircarmes  and  Berlaymont  accepted  with 
very  great  eagerness.^    Several  presidents  and  council- 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  647. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  666. 

'  "  Norcarme  y  Barlemon  ...  no  solo  no  han  rehusado,  pero 
me  pareee  lo  han  acetado  de  muy  buena  gana."— MS.  Letter  of 
Alva,  10th  September,  1567 ;  cited  in  Gachard,  Notice  sur  le  Con- 
seil  des  Troubles,  p.  7,  note. 


1567]  JUAN  DE  VARGAS  421 

ors  of  the  different  provincial  tribunals  were  appointed, 
but  all  the  Netherlanders  were  men  of  straw.  Two 
Spaniards,  Del  Ryo  and  Vargas,  were  the  only  members 
who  could  vote,  while  their  decisions,  as  already  stated, 
were  subject  to  reversal  by  Alva.  Del  Ryo  was  a  man 
without  character  or  talent,  a  mere  tool  in  the  hands  of 
his  superiors,  but  Juan  de  Vargas  was  a  terrible  reality. 
No  better  man  could  have  been  found  in  Europe  for 
the  post  to  which  he  was  thus  elevated.  To  shed  human 
blood  was,  in  his  opinion,  the  only  important  business 
and  the  only  exliilarating  pastime  of  life.  His  youth 
had  been  stained  with  other  crimes.  He  had  been 
obliged  to  retire  from  Spain  because  of  his  violation  of 
an  orphan  child  to  whom  he  was  guardian,^  but  in  his 
manhood  he  found  no  pleasure  but  in  murder.  He  ex- 
ecuted Alva's  bloody  work  with  an  industry  which  was 
almost  superhuman,  and  with  a  merriment  which  would 
have  shamed  a  demon.  His  execrable  jests  ring  through 
the  blood  and  smoke  and  death-cries  of  those  days  of 
perpetual  sacrifice.  He  was  proud  to  be  the  double  of 
the  iron-hearted  duke,  and  acted  so  uniformly  in  ac- 
cordance with  his  views  that  the  right  of  revision 
remained  but  nominal.  There  could  be  no  possibility 
of  collision  where  the  subaltern  was  only  anxious  to 
surpass  an  incomparable  superior.  The  figure  of  Vargas 
rises  upon  us  through  the  mist  of  three  centuries  with 
terrible  distinctness.  Even  his  barbarous  grammar  has 
not  been  forgotten,  and  his  crimes  against  syntax  and 
against  humanity  have  acquired  the  same  immortality. 
"  Heretic!  f  raxerunt  templa,  boni  nihili  faxerunt  contra, 

1  Hoofd,  iv.  152.  See  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  ii.  713, 
731,  also  La  deduction  de  I'innocence  du  Comte  de  Homes, 
pp.  60,  61. 

VOL.  n.— 28 


422  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

ergo  debent  omnes  patibulare,"  was  the  comprehensive 
but  barbarous  formula  of  a  man  who  murdered  the  Latin 
language  as  ruthlessly  as  he  slaughtered  his  contempo- 
raries.^ 

Among  the  ciphers  who  composed  the  rest  of  the 
board,  the  Flemish  councilor  Hessels  was  the  one 
whom  the  duke  most  respected.  He  was  not  without 
talent  or  learning,  but  the  duke  only  valued  him  for 
his  cruelty.  Being  allowed  to  take  but  little  share  in 
the  deliberations,  Hessels  was  accustomed  to  doze  away 
his  afternoon  hours  at  the  council-table,  and  when 
awakened  from  his  nap  in  order  that  he  might  express 
an  opinion  on  the  case  then  before  the  court,  was  wont 
to  rub  his  eyes  and  to  call  out,  '^  Ad  patibulum,  ad  pati- 
bulum"  ("To  the  gallows  with  him,  to  the  gallows  with 
him  "),  with  great  fervor,  but  in  entire  ignorance  of  the 
culprit's  name  or  the  merits  of  the  case.  His  wife, 
naturally  disturbed  that  her  husband's  waking  and  sleep- 
ing hours  were  alike  absorbed  with  this  hangman's  work, 
more  than  once  ominously  expressed  her  hope  to  him 
that  he,  whose  head  and  heart  were  thus  engrossed 
with  the  gibbet,  might  not  one  day  come  to  hang  upon 
it  himself— a  gloomy  prophecy  which  the  future  most 
terribly  fulfilled.^ 

The  Council  of  Blood,  thus  constituted,  held  its  first 
session  on  the  20th  September,  at  the  lodgings  of  Alva.^ 
Springing  completely  grown  and  armed  to  the  teeth 
from  the  head  of  its  inventor,  the  new  tribunal— at  the 

1  v.  d.  Vynckt,  ii.  75,  76,  77.  Brandt,  i.  465,  466.  Reidani,  p.  5. 
Hoofd,  152.  "  The  heretics  destroyed  the  temples,  the  good  men 
did  nothing  to  prevent  it,  therefore  they  should  all  be  hanged." 

2  Hoofd,  xiv.  594.     Brandt,  i.  494. 

3  Gachard,  Notice,  etc.,  9. 


1567]  ACTIVITY  OF   THE   TKIBUNAL  423 

very  outset  in  possession  of  all  its  vigor— forthwith 
began  to  manifest  a  terrible  activity  in  accomplishing 
the  objects  of  its  existence.  The  councilors  having  been 
sworn  to  ''  eternal  secrecy  as  to  anything  which  should 
be  transacted  at  the  board,  and  having  likewise  made 
oath  to  denounce  any  one  of  their  number  who  should 
violate  the  pledge/'  the  court  was  considered  as  organ- 
ized. Alva  worked  therein  seven  hours  daily.^  It  may 
be  believed  that  the  subordinates  were  not  spared,  and 
that  their  office  proved  no  sinecure.  Their  labors,  how- 
ever, were  not  encumbered  by  antiquated  forms.  As 
this  supreme  and  only  tribunal  for  all  the  Netherlands 
had  no  commission  or  authority  save  the  will  of  the 
captain-general,  so  it  was  also  thought  a  matter  of  super- 
erogation to  establish  a  set  of  rules  and  orders  such 
as  might  be  useful  in  less  independent  courts.  The 
forms  of  proceeding  were  brief  and  artless.  There  was 
a  rude  organization,  by  which  a  crowd  of  commissioners, 
acting  as  inferior  officers  of  the  council,  were  spread 
over  the  provinces,  whose  business  was  to  collect  infor- 
mation concerning  all  persons  who  might  be  incrimi- 
nated for  participation  in  the  recent  troubles.^  The 
greatest  crime,  however,  was  to  be  rich,  and  one  which 
could  be  expiated  by  no  virtues,  however  signal.  Alva 
was  bent  upon  proving  himself  as  accomplished  a  finan- 
cier as  he  was  indisputably  a  consummate  commander, 
and  he  had  promised  his  master  an  annual  income  of 
five  hundred  thousand  ducats  from  the  confiscations 
which  were  to  accompany  the  executions.^ 

It  was  necessary  that  the  blood-torrent  should  flow  at 

1  Gachard,  Notice,  etc.,  10.  2  ibid.,  14,  etc. 

3  Ibid.,  22.     Compare  Brandt,  i.  475 ;  Meteren,  29 ;  Hoofd,  iv. ; 
v.  d.  Vynckt,  ii.  81,  et  alios. 


424  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

once  through  the  Netherlands,  in  order  that  the  promised 
golden  river— a  yard  deep,  according  to  his  vaunt  i— 
should  begin  to  irrigate  the  thirsty  soil  of  Spain.  It  is 
obvious,  from  the  fundamental  laws  which  were  made 
to  define  treason  at  the  same  moment  in  which  they 
established  the  council,  that  any  man  might  be  at  any 
instant  summoned  to  the  court.  Every  man,  whether 
innocent  or  guilty,  whether  papist  or  Protestant,  felt 
liis  head  shaking  on  his  shoulders.  If  he  were  wealthy, 
there  seemed  no  remedy  but  flight,  which  was  now 
almost  impossible,  from  the  heavy  penalties  affixed  by 
the  new  edict  upon  all  carriers,  shipmasters,  and  wag- 
oners who  should  aid  in  the  escape  of  heretics.^ 

A  certain  number  of  these  commissioners  were  par- 
ticularly instructed  to  collect  information  as  to  the 
treason  of  Orange,  Louis  of  Nassau,  Brederode,  Egmont, 
Horn,  Culemburg,  Van  den  Berg,  Berghen,  and  Mon- 
tigny.  Upon  such  information  the  proceedings  against 
those  distinguished  seigniors  were  to  be  summarily  in- 
stituted. Particular  councilors  of  the  Court  of  Blood 
were  charged  with  the  arrangement  of  these  important 
suits,  but  the  commissioners  were  to  report  in  the  first 
instance  to  the  duke  himself,  who  afterward  returned  the 
paper  into  the  hands  of  his  subordinates.^ 

With  regard  to  the  inferior  and  miscellaneous  cases 
which  were  daily  brought  in  incredible  profusion  before 
the  tribunal,  the  same  preliminaries  were  observed,  by 
way  of  aping  the  proceedings  in  courts  of  justice.  Alva 
sent  the  cart-loads  of  information  which  were  daily 
brought  to  him,  but  which  neither  he  nor  any  other 
man  had  time  to  read,  to  be  disposed  of  by  the  board  of 

1  Brandt,  i.  496.  2  Bor,  iii.  175,  176. 

3  Gacliard,  Notice,  etc.,  10,  11. 


1567]  MODE  OF  PROCEDURE  425 

councilors.  It  was  the  duty  of  the  different  subalterns, 
who,  as  already  stated,  had  no  right  of  voting,  to  pre- 
pare reports  upon  the  cases.  Nothing  could  be  more 
summary.  Information  was  lodged  against  a  man,  or 
against  a  hundred  men,  in  one  document.  The  duke 
sent  the  papers  to  the  council,  and  the  inferior  council- 
ors reported  at  once  to  Vargas.  If  the  report  concluded 
with  a  recommendation  of  death  to  the  man,  or  the  hun- 
dred men,  in  question,  Vargas  instantly  approved  it,  and 
execution  was  done  upon  the  man,  or  the  hundred  men, 
within  forty-eight  hours.  If  the  report  iiad  any  other 
conclusion^  it  was  immediately  sent  back  for  revision, 
and  the  reporters  were  overwhelmed  with  reproaches  by 
the  president.^ 

Such  being  the  method  of  operation, it  may  be  supposed 
that  the  councilors  were  not  allowed  to  slacken  in  their 
terrible  industry.  The  register  of  every  city,  village, 
and  hamlet  throughout  the  Netherlands  showed  the 
daily  lists  of  men,  women,  and  children  thus  sacrificed 
at  the  shrine  of  the  demon  who  had  obtained  the  mas- 
tery over  this  unhappy  land.^  It  was  not  often  that  an 
individual  was  of  sufficient  importance  to  be  tried— if 
trial  it  could  be  called— by  himself .^     It  was  found  more 

1  Gachard,  Notice;  etc.,  19,  20.  "En  siendo  el  aviso  de  con- 
denaer  a  muerte  se  decia  que  estaba  muy  bien  y  no  habia  mas  que 
ver ;  empero,  si  el  aviso  era  de  menor  pena,  no  se  estaba  h,  lo  que 
ellos  decian,  sino  tornabase  a  ver  el  proceso,  y  decian  les  sobre 
ellos  malas  palabras  y  hacian  les  ruin  tratamiento,"  etc.— Official 
document  cited  by  M.  Gachard  in  Notice  sur  le  Conseil,  etc. 

2  Hoofd,  iv.     Brandt,  ix. 

^  See  in  particular  the  Sententien  van  Alva  gezammelt  van  J, 
Markus,  passim,  a  work  in  which  a  few  thousand  sentences  of 
death  upon  men  and  women  still  in  the  Netherlands,  or  of  banish- 
ment under  pain  of  death  upon  such  as  had  escaped,  have  been 


426  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

expeditious  to  send  them  in  batches  to  the  furnace. 
Thus,  for  example,  on  the  4th  of  January,  eighty-four 
inhabitants  of  Valenciennes  were  condemned;  on  an- 
other day,  ninety-five  miscellaneous  individuals,  from 
different  places  in  Flanders;  on  another,  forty-six  in- 
habitants of  Mechlin;  on  another,  thirty-five  persons 
from  different  localities,  and  so  on.i 

The  evening  of  Shrovetide,  a  favorite  holiday  in  the 
Netherlands,  afforded  an  occasion  for  arresting  and  car- 
rying off  a  vast  number  of  doomed  individuals  at  a 
single  swoop.2  It  was  correctly  supposed  that  the  bur- 
ghers, filled  with  wine  and  wassail,  to  which  perhaps  the 
persecution  under  which  they  lived  lent  an  additional 
and  horrible  stimulus,  might  be  easily  taken  from  their 
beds  in  great  numbers,  and  be  delivered  over  at  once  to 
the  council.  The  plot  was  ingenious,  the  net  was  spread 
accordingly.  Many  of  the  doomed  were,  however, 
luckily  warned  of  the  terrible  termination  which  was 
impending  over  their  festival,  and  bestowed  themselves 
in  safety  for  a  season.  A  prize  of  about  five  hundred 
prisoners  was  all  which  rewarded  the  sagacity  of  the 
enterprise.^  It  is  needless  to  add  that  they  were  all 
immediately  executed.  It  is  a  wearisome  and  odious 
task  to  ransack  the  moldy  records  of  three  centuries 
ago  in  order  to  reproduce  the  obscure  names  of  the 

collected  and  published.  The  sentences  were  given  mainly  upon 
the  culprits  in  lots  or  gangs.  See  also  the  Correspondance  de 
Philippe  II.,  ii.  passim,  and  the  liegistre  des  Condamn^s  et  Ban- 
nis  a  Cause  des  Troubles  des  Pays-Bas  (3  vols.  MS.,  Brussels 
Archives). 

1  Hoofd,  iv.  157,  158.     Meteren,  49.     Gachard,  15,  16. 

2  Hoofd,  iv.  157,  158.  Brandt,  i.  471.  Bor,  iv.  230.  Gachard, 
14. 

^  Hoofd,  Brandt,  Bor,  Gachard,  ubi  supra. 


1567]  EXAMPLES  427 

thousands  who  were  thus  sacrificed.  The  dead  have 
buried  their  dead,  and  are  forgotten.  It  is  likewise 
hardly  necessary  to  state  that  the  proceedings  before 
the  council  were  all  ex  parte,  and  that  an  information 
was  almost  inevitably  followed  by  a  death-warrant.  It 
sometimes  happened  even  that  the  zeal  of  the  councilors 
outstripped  the  industry  of  the  commissioners.  The 
sentences  were  occasionally  in  advance  of  the  docket. 
Thus  upon  one  occasion  a  man's  case  was  called  for  trial, 
but  before  the  investigation  was  commenced  it  was  dis- 
covered that  he  had  been  already  executed,  A  cursory 
examination  of  the  papers  proved,  moreover,  as  usual, 
that  the  culprit  had  committed  no  crime.  "  No  matter 
for  that,"  said  Vargas,  jocosely ;  "  if  he  has  died  inno- 
cent, it  will  be  all  the  better  for  him  when  he  takes  his 
trial  in  the  other  world."  ^ 

But,  however  the  councilors  might  indulge  in  these 
gentle  jests  among  themselves,  it  was  obvious  that  inno- 
cence was  in  reality  impossible,  according  to  the  rules 
which  had  been  laid  down  regarding  treason.  The 
practice  was  in  accordance  with  the  precept,  and  per- 
sons were  daily  executed  with  senseless  pretexts,  which 
was  worse  than  executions  with  no  pretexts  at  all. 
Thus  Peter  de  Witt  of  Amsterdam  was  beheaded  be- 
cause at  one  of  the  tumults  in  that  city  he  had  per- 
suaded a  rioter  not  to  fire  upon  a  magistrate.  This  was 
taken  as  sufficient  proof  that  he  was  a  man  in  authority 
among  the  rebels,  and  he  was  accordingly  put  to  death.^ 
Madame  Juriaen,  who,  in  1566,  had  struck  with  her 
slipper  a  little  wooden  image  of  the  Virgin,  together 
with  her  maid-servant,  who  had  witnessed  without  de- 

1  Brandt,  i,  494.     Hoofd,  v,  191, 

2  Hoofd,  V,  183,     Brandt,  i.  488. 


428  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

nouncing  the  crime,  were  both  drowned  by  the  hang- 
man in  a  hogshead  placed  on  the  scaffold.^ 

Death,  even,  did  not  in  all  cases  place  a  criminal 
beyond  the  reach  of  the  executioner.  Egbert  Meynart- 
zoon,  a  man  of  high  official  rank,  had  been  condemned, 
together  with  two  colleagues,  on  an  accusation  of  collect- 
ing money  in  a  Lutheran  church.  He  died  in  prison  of 
dropsy.  The  sheriff  was  indignant  with  the  physician, 
because,  in  spite  of  cordials  and  strengthening  prescrip- 
tions, the  culprit  had  slipped  through  his  fingers  before 
he  had  felt  those  of  the  hangman.  He  consoled  himself 
by  placing  the  body  on  a  chair,  and  having  the  dead 
man  beheaded  in  company  with  his  colleagues.^ 

Thus  the  whole  country  became  a  charnel-house ;  the 
death-bell  tolled  hourly  in  every  village ;  not  a  family 
but  was  called  to  mourn  for  its  dearest  relatives,  while 
the  survivors  stalked  listlessly  about,  the  ghosts  of  their 
former  selves,  among  the  wrecks  of  their  former  homes. 
The  spirit  of  the  nation,  within  a  few  months  after  the 
arrival  of  Alva,  seemed  hopelessly  broken.  The  blood 
of  its  best  and  bravest  had  already  stained  the  scaffold  j 
the  men  to  whom  it  had  been  accustomed  to  look  for 
guidance  and  protection  were  dead,  in  prison,  or  in 
exile.  Submission  had  ceased  to  be  of  any  avail,  flight 
was  impossible,  and  the  spirit  of  vengeance  had  alighted 
at  every  fireside.  The  mourners  went  daily  about  the 
streets,  for  there  was  hardly  a  house  which  had  not 
been  made  desolate.  The  scaffolds,  the  gallowses,  the 
funeral  piles,  which  had  been  sufficient  in  ordinary 
times,  furnished  now  an  entirely  inadequate  machinery 
for  the  incessant  executions.     Columns  and  stakes  in 

1  Brandt,  i.  488.     Reael,  43.     Hist,  des  Martyrs,  449. 

2  Brandt,  488.    Reael,  60,  6.    Hoofd,  v.  181,  182. 


1567]  MAKGAEET'S  RESIGNATION  429 

every  street,  tlie  door-posts  of  private  houses,  the  fences 
in  the  fields,  were  laden  with  human  carcasses,  strangled, 
burned,  beheaded.  The  orchards  in  the  country  bore 
on  many  a  tree  the  hideous  fruit  of  human  bodies.^ 

Thus  the  Netherlands  were  crushed,  and  but  for  the 
stringency  of  the  tyranny  which  had  now  closed  their 
gates,  would  have  been  depopulated.  The  grass  began 
to  grow  in  the  streets  of  those  cities  which  had  recently 
nourished  so  many  artisans.  In  all  those  great  manu- 
facturing and  industrial  marts  where  the  tide  of  human 
life  had  throbbed  so  vigorously,  there  now  reigned  the 
silence  and  the  darkness  of  midnight.  It  was  at  this 
time  that  the  learned  VigMus  wrote  to  his  friend  Hopper 
that  aU  venerated  the  prudence  and  gentleness  of  the 
Duke  of  Alva.2  Such  were  among  the  first-fruits  of 
that  prudence  and  that  gentleness. 

The  Duchess  of  Parma  had  been  kept  in  a  continued 
state  of  irritation.  She  had  not  ceased  for  many 
months  to  demand  her  release  from  the  odious  position 
of  a  cipher  in  a  land  where  she  had  so  lately  been 
sovereign,  and  she  had  at  last  obtained  it.  Philip 
transmitted  his  acceptance  of  her  resignation  by  the 
same  courier  who  brought  Alva's  commission  to  be  gov- 
ernor-general in  her  place.^  The  letters  to  the  duchess 
were  full  of  conventional  compliments  for  her  past 
services,  accompanied,  however,  with  a  less  barren  and 
more  acceptable  acknowledgment,  in  the  shape  of  a  life- 
income  of  fourteen  thousand  ducats  instead  of  the  eight 
thousand  hitherto  enjoyed  by  her  Highness.* 

In  addition  to  this  liberal  allowance,  of  which  she  was 

1  Hoofd,  iv.  153.  2  vigl.  Epist.  ad  Hopp.,  xlvi.  451. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  658,  662,  680,  etc. 
*  Ibid.,  658.     Strada,  i.  305. 


430  THE  RISE  OP  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

never  to  be  deprived,  except  upon  receiving  full  pay- 
ment of  one  hundred  and  forty  thousand  ducats,  she 
was  presented  with  twenty-five  thousand  florins  by  the 
estates  of  Brabant,  and  vrith  thirty  thousand  by  those 
of  Flanders.i 

With  these  substantial  tokens  of  the  success  of  her 
nine  years'  fatigue  and  intolerable  anxiety,  she  at  last 
took  her  departure  from  the  Netherlands,  having  com- 
municated the  dissolution  of  her  connection  with  the 
provinces  by  a  farewell  letter  to  the  estates  dated  9th 
December,  1567.^  Within  a  few  weeks  afterward,  es- 
corted by  the  Duke  of  Alva  across  the  frontier  of  Bra- 
bant, attended  by  a  considerable  deputation  of  Flemish 
nobility  into  Germany,  and  accompanied  to  her  journey's 
end  at  Parma  by  the  Count  and  Countess  of  Mansfeld, 
she  finally  closed  her  eventful  career  in  the  Netherlands.^ 

The  horrors  of  the  succeeding  administration  proved 
beneficial  to  her  reputation.  Upon  the  dark  ground  of 
succeeding  years  the  lines  which  recorded  her  history 
seemed  written  with  letters  of  light.  Yet  her  conduct 
in  the  Netherlands  offers  but  few  points  for  approba- 
tion, and  many  for  indignant  censure.  That  she  was 
not  entirely  destitute  of  feminine  softness  and  senti- 
ments of  bounty,  her  parting  despatch  to  her  brother 
proved.  In  that  letter  she  recommended  to  him  a  course 
of  clemency  and  forgiveness,  and  reminded  him  that  the 
nearer  kings  approach  to  God  in  station,  the  more  they 
should  endeavor  to  imitate  him  in  his  attributes  of 
benignity.*    But  the  language  of  this  farewell  was  more 

1  Vigl.  Epist.  adHopp.,  xlv.  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  ii. 
715.  2  See  it  in  Bor,  iv.  186,  187. 

3  Vigl.  ad  Hopp.,  xiv.,  xlvi.     Strada,  i.  305,  306. 
*  Correspondanee  de  Philippe  II.,  687. 


1567]  CIVIL  WAR  IN  FRANCE  431 

tender  than  had  been  the  spirit  of  her  government. 
One  looks  in  vain,  too,  through  the  general  atmosphere 
of  kindness  which  pervades  the  epistle,  for  a  special 
recommendation  of  those  distinguished  and  doomed 
seigniors  whose  attachment  to  her  person  and  whose 
chivalrous  and  conscientious  endeavors  to  fulfil  her  own 
orders  had  placed  them  upon  the  edge  of  that  precipice 
from  which  they  were  shortly  to  be  hurled.  The  men 
who  had  restrained  her  from  covering  herself  with  dis- 
grace by  a  precipitate  retreat  from  the  post  of  danger, 
and  who  had  imperiled  their  lives  by  obedience  to  her 
express  instructions,  had  been  long  languishing  in  soli- 
tary confinement,  never  to  be  terminated  except  by  a 
traitor's  death ;  yet  we  search  in  vain  for  a  kind  word 
in  their  behalf. 

Meantime  the  second  civil  war  in  France  had  broken 
out.  The  hollow  truce  by  which  the  Guise  party  and 
the  Huguenots  had  partly  pretended  to  deceive  each 
other  was  hastened  to  its  end,  among  other  causes,  by 
the  march  of  Alva  to  the  Netherlands.  The  Huguenots 
had  taken  alarm,  for  they  recognized  the  fellowship 
which  united  their  foes  in  all  countries  against  the  Ref- 
ormation, and  Conde  and  Coligny  knew  too  well  that 
the  same  influence  which  had  brought  Alva  to  Brussels 
would  soon  create  an  exterminating  army  against  their 
followers.  Hostilities  were  resumed  with  more  bitter- 
ness than  ever.  The  battle  of  St.-Denis— fierce,  fatal, 
but  indecisive— was  fought.  The  octogenarian  hero 
Montmorency,  fighting  like  a  foot-soldier,  refusing  to 
yield  his  sword,  and  replying  to  the  respectful  solicita- 
tions of  his  nearest  enemy  by  dashing  his  teeth  down 
his  throat  with  the  butt-end  of  his  pistol,  the  hero  of  so 
many  battles,  whose  defeat  at  St.-Quentin  had  been  the 


432  THE  EISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  EEPUBLIC         [1567 

fatal  point  in  his  career,  had  died  at  last  in  his  armor, 
bravely  but  not  gloriously,  in  conflict  with  his  own 
countrymen,  led  by  his  own  heroic  nephew.^  The  mili- 
tary control  of  the  Catholic  party  was  completely  in  the 
hand  of  the  Guises;  the  Chancellor  de  L'Hopital  had 
abandoned  the  court  after  a  last  and  futile  effort  to 
reconcile  contending  factions  which  no  human  power 
could  unite ;  the  Huguenots  had  possessed  themselves 
of  RocheUe  and  of  other  strong  places,  and,  under  the 
guidance  of  adroit  statesmen  and  accomplished  generals, 
were  pressing  the  Most  Christian  monarch  hard  in  the 
very  heart  of  his  kingdom.^ 

As  early  as  the  middle  of  October,  while  still  in  Ant- 
werp, Alva  had  received  several  secret  agents  of  the 
French  monarch,  then  closely  beleaguered  in  his  capital. 
Cardinal  Lorraine  offered  to  place  several  strong  places 
of  France  in  the  hands  of  the  Spaniard,  and  Alva  had 
written  to  Philip  that  he  was  disposed  to  accept  the 
offer  and  to  render  the  service.  The  places  thus  held 
would  be  a  guaranty  for  his  expenses,  he  said,  while  in 
case  King  Charles  and  his  brother  should  die,  ''their 
possession  would  enable  Philip  to  assert  his  own  claim 
to  the  French  crown  in  right  of  his  wife,  the  Salic  law 
being  merely  a  pleasantry."  ^ 

The  queen  dowager,  adopting  now  a  very  different 
tone  from  that  which  characterized  her  conversation  at 
the  Bayonne  interview,  wrote  to  Alva  that  if,  for  want 
of  two  thousand  Spanish  musketeers,  which  she  re- 
quested him  to  furnish,  she  should  be  obliged  to  suc- 
cumb, she  chose  to  disculpate  herself  in  advance  before 

1  De  Thou,  t.  5,  liv.  xli.  374  et  seq. 

2  Ibid.,  378. 

3  Correspondance  de  Philippe  H.,  i.  593,  594. 


1567]        AEEANGEMENTS  WITH  FEENCH  COURT         433 

God  and  Christian  princes  for  the  peace  which  she 
should  be  obliged  to  make.^  The  duke  wrote  to  her  in 
reply  that  it  was  much  better  to  have  a  kingdom  ruined 
in  preserving  it  for  God  and  the  king  by  war,  than  to 
have  it  kept  entire  without  war,  to  the  profit  of  the  devil 
and  of  his  f  oUowers.^  He  was  also  reported  on  another 
occasion  to  have  reminded  her  of  the  Spanish  proverb 
that  the  head  of  one  salmon  is  worth  those  of  a  hundred 
frogs.^  The  hint,  if  it  were  really  given,  was  certainly 
destined  to  be  acted  upon. 

The  duke  not  only  furnished  Catherine  with  advice, 
but  with  the  musketeers  which  she  had  solicited.  Two 
thousand  foot  and  fifteen  hundred  horse,  under  the 
Count  of  Aremberg,  attended  by  a  choice  band  of  the 
Catholic  nobility  of  the  Netherlands,  had  joined  the  royal 
camp  at  Paris  before  the  end  of  the  year,  to  take  their 
part  in  the  brief  hostilities  by  which  the  second  treacher- 
ous peace  was  to  be  preceded.* 

Meantime  Alva  was  not  unmindful  of  the  business 
which  had  served  as  a  pretext  in  the  arrest  of  the  two 
counts.  The  fortifications  of  the  principal  cities  were 
pushed  on  with  great  rapidity.  The  memorable  citadel 
of  Antwerp,  in  particular,  had  already  been  commenced 
in  October,  under  the  superintendence  of  the  celebrated 
engineers  Pacheco  and  Gabriel  de  Cerbelloni.^  In  a 
few  months  it  was  completed,  at  a  cost  of  one  million 
four  hundred  thousand  florins,  of  which  sum  the  citizens, 

1  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  i.  694. 

2  Ibid.,  i.  696. 

3  De  Thou,  t.  5,  liv.  xliv.  515.  Hug.  Grot.  Annal.,  lib.  ii.  40. 
Bor,  iv.  219. 

*  Bor,  iv.  219. 

5  Correspondance  de  Philippe  II.,  ii.  725,  726.     Bor,  iv. 


434  THE  RISE  OF  THE  DUTCH  REPUBLIC         [1567 

in  spite  of  their  remonstrances,  were  compelled  to  con- 
tribute more  than  one  quarter.  The  sum  of  four  hun- 
dred thousand  florins  was  forced  from  the  burghers  by 
a  tax  upon  aU  hereditary  property  within  the  munici- 
pality.i  Two  thousand  workmen  were  employed  daily 
in  the  construction  of  this  important  fortress,  which 
was  erected,  as  its  position  most  plainly  manifested,  not 
to  protect,  but  to  control  the  commercial  capital  of  the 
provinces.  It  stood  at  the  edge  of  the  city,  only  sep- 
arated from  its  walls  by  an  open  esplanade.  It  was  the 
most  perfect  pentagon  in  Europe,^  having  one  of  its 
sides  resting  on  the  Schelde,  two  turned  toward  the  city, 
and  two  toward  the  open  country.  Five  bastions,  with 
walls  of  hammered  stone,  connected  by  curtains  of  turf 
and  masonry,  surrounded  by  walls  measuring  a  league 
in  circumference,  and  by  an  outer  moat  fed  by  the 
Schelde,  inclosed  a  spacious  enceinte,  where  a  little 
church,  with  many  small  lodging-houses,  shaded  by  trees 
and  shrubbery,  nestled  among  the  bristling  artillery,  as 
if  to  mimic  the  appearance  of  a  peaceful  and  pastoral 
village.  To  four  of  the  five  bastions  the  captain-gen- 
eral, with  characteristic  ostentation,  gave  his  own  names 
and  titles.  One  was  called  the  Duke,  the  second  Fer- 
nando, a  third  Toledo,  a  fourth  Alva,  while  the  fifth  was 
baptized  with  the  name  of  the  ill-fated  engineer  Pacheco. 
The  water-gate  was  decorated  with  the  escutcheon  of 
Alva,  surrounded  by  his  Golden  Fleece  collar,  with  its 
pendent  Lamb  of  God—  a  symbol  of  blasphemous  irony, 
which  still  remains  upon  the  fortress  to  recall  the  image 
of  the  tyrant  and  murderer.     Each  bastion  was  honey- 

1  Bor,  iv.  219. 

2  "La  nompareille  forteresse  du  monde."— Brantome,  Vie  de 
Don  Sancho  d'Avila. 


1567]  ANTWERP  CITADEL  435 

combed  with  casemates  and  subten-anean  storehouses, 
and  capable  of  containing  within  its  bowels  a  vast  sup- 
ply of  provisions,  munitions,  and  soldiers.  Such  was 
the  celebrated  citadel  built  to  tame  the  turbulent  spirit 
of  Antwerp  at  the  cost  of  those  whom  it  was  to  terrify 
and  to  insult,  1 

1  De  Thou,  V.  300.     Bor,  iv.  219.    Hoofd,  iv.  154.     Bentivoglio, 
iv.  58. 


"^ 


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